The fibrinolytic activity of the pleural mesothelium from 16 sheep was investigated. Only one of the eight sheep examined by the fibrin slide method showed evidence of mesothelial fibrinolysis. Activators and inhibitors of fibrinolysis were demonstrated in extracts of mesothelial cells from another eight sheep after prolonged incubation on plasminogen-rich fibrin plates. The activity of the inhibitor was greater than that of the activator. It was concluded that the low level of fibrinolytic activity may contribute to the high prevalence of pleural adhesions found in New Zealand sheep at slaughter.
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