In Vitro Analysis of Hemostatic Efficacy of Fibrinogen Precipitation With Varied Keratin Fraction Compositions

The study aimed to evaluate the impact of different keratin fractions on keratin-mediated fibrinogen precipitation and optimize the use of human hair keratin for hemostasis. The team extracted soluble keratin intermediate filaments (KIFs) and keratin-associated proteins (KAPs) from hair samples and investigated their effects on fibrinogen precipitation. The results showed that while thrombin demonstrated greater hemostatic properties than most hair protein mixtures, pre-incubated hair proteins or their combinations could still precipitate fibrinogen in the absence of thrombin. The study concluded that two distinct types of keratin, KAPs and KIFs, from human hair exhibit unique characteristics and hemostatic capacity to precipitate fibrinogen when mixed in various ratios.