The effect of human activated protein C (APC) on tissue plasminogen activator (tPA)-induced fibrinolysis was studied in cell free plasma and in a system of purified components. Clots were produced by adding plasma or a solution of fibrinogen and plasminogen to the wells of a microtiter plate containing small separated aliquots of Ca2+, thrombin, and tPA, plus and minus APC. Initial clotting and subsequent fibrinolysis were monitored continuously by turbidity. The lysis time of dialyzed normal human plasma (NHP) was longer than that of dialyzed barium citrate-adsorbed plasma (BAP). APC had no effect on the lysis time of BAP but shortened the lysis time of NHP to that of BAP. Two fractions were produced from material eluted from the barium citrate pellet by precipitation of selective components with polyethylene glycol 8000 (PEG). One fraction comprised materials which precipitated at 5% PEG (5% PF) and the other materials which precipitated between 5 and 40% PEG (5-40% PF). Both fractions together, but neither alone, prolonged the lysis time of BAP, an effect which could be reversed by APC. Fractionation of the 5% PF showed that the component with the required activity has properties of the procoagulant surface and can be replaced with vesicles of phosphatidylcholine/phosphatidylserine (PCPS). In addition, the 5-40% PF can be replaced with either the combination of purified coagulation Factors II, IX, and X or Factor II plus the prothrombin activator Factor Xa. When Factor Xa was used as the activator in BAP plus PSPC vesicles, a dose-dependent saturable increase in lysis time was observed with a half-maximal increase occurring at 32 pM Factor Xa. This effect was eliminated by APC. In a system of purified components comprising PCPS vesicles, Factors V and II, protein S, plasminogen and fibrinogen; the prothrombin activators Factor Xa and ecarin both induced a prolongation of the lysis time. APC prevented prolongation by Factor Xa but not by ecarin. The time courses of the generation of thrombin and plasmin during fibrinolysis of clots produced from systems of purified components in the presence and absence of APC, and with Factor Xa as the prothrombin activator, were determined by standardized activity assays using chromogenic substrates. In the absence of APC the lysis time was 145 min, and prothrombin was quantitatively converted to thrombin. In the presence of APC, however, the lysis time was reduced to 100 min with no evidence for the activation of prothrombin.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)