Fibrinolytic and antithrombotic action of bromelain may eliminate thrombosis in heart patients.

It has been established that a bromelain plasminogen activator will produce plasmin in rat experiments. In addition the plasmin cleaves Hageman factor in a way that leads to a strong release of kallikrein but a weak release of thrombin. A possible mechanism is suggested to explain how the body can maintain thrombin at a level too low to cause platelet aggregation but adequate to stimulate release of prostaglandins and enzymes for more than 24 hours from a single dose of the pineapple enzymes. Since bromelain therapy leads to formation of platelets with increased resistance to aggregation, it is obvious that the dominant endogenous prostaglandins being produced must be from the group that increases platelet cyclicAMP levels (prostacyclin, PGE1, etc.). The combination of fibrinolytic and antithrombic properties appear to be effective and two large scale tests on heart patients have shown a practically complete elimination of thrombosis.