Modulation of Prothrombinse Assembly and Activity by Phosphotidylethanolamine.

Abstract 4207

Constituents of naturally occurring phospholipid membranes regulate the activity of the prothrombinase complex. In the present study we demonstrate that membranes containing phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylethanolamine (PC:PE) bind factor Va with high affinity (K_d ∼10 nM) in the absence of phosphatidylserine (PS). These membranes support formation of a functional prothrombinase complex though thrombin generation at saturating factor Va concentrations is reduced approximately 60-70% compared to membranes containing 5% or more PS. The presence of PE markedly enhances the catalytic efficiency of the prothrombinase complex on membranes containing 1% PS with only modest effects on membranes containing 5% or more PS. The effect of PE on factor Va membrane binding appears to be due to direct interactions between PE and factor Va rather than to changes in membrane surface packing. Finally, we find that soluble C6PE is able to bind to factor Va (K_d ∼6.5 uM) and factor Xa (K_d ∼ 91 uM). We also show that soluble C6PE is able to stimulate formation of a partially active factor Va-factor Xa complex capable of catalyzing conversion of prothrombin to thrombin in the absence of a membrane surface. We further demonstrate that C6PE and C6PS binding sites in factor Xa are linked, as binding of one lipid enhances the binding and activity of the other. These findings provide important new insights into the role of PE in assembly of the prothrombinase complex that are relevant to understanding the activity of factor Xa on the surface of platelets particularly in the early phases of hemostasis when the concentration of PS may be limiting.