Di Cera Lab Reveals Structures of Factor V and Va

The Di Cera Lab recently published a paper in Blood entitled “Cryo-EM structures of human coagulation factors V and Va.” The paper details their work on solving the structures of factor V and Va. Factor V is the precursor to factor Va, which combines with calcium and phospholipids to activate prothrombin in the coagulation cascade.

Researchers used Cryo-EM to uncover the structures, including revealing the proteolytic processing sites and epitope binding sites. Key differences between the two structures were revealed and helped to clarify the function of these factors in coagulation.