Orban, T: Modeling of mixed/asymmetrical phospholipid membra

Thrombin generation is the culminating stage of the blood coagulation process. Thrombin is obtained from prothrombin (the substrate) in a reaction catalyzed by the prothrombinase complex (the enzyme). The prothrombinase complex is composed of factor Xa (the enzyme), factor Va (the cofactor) associated in the presence of calcium ions on a negatively charged cell membrane. Factor Xa, alone, can activate prothrombin to thrombin; however, the rate of conversion is not physiologically relevant for survival. Incorporation of factor Va into prothrombinase accelerates the rate of prothrombinase activity by 300,000-fold, and provides the physiological pathway of thrombin generation. The short-term goals of the present proposal ware to (1) to propose a model of a mixed asymmetric phospholipid bilayer, (2) to create a homology model of prothrombin (3) to study the dynamics of interaction between prothrombin and the phospholipid bilayer.