Factor V I359T: a novel mutation associated with thrombosis and resistance to activated protein C

We report a kindred in which two siblings suffered spontaneous venous thromboses in the second decade of life. Further investigation showed reduced coagulation factor V (FV) activity and activated protein C resistance (APCR) ratio but no other thrombophilic abnormalities. The reduction in APCR ratio persisted in a modified APCR assay in which FV activity was normalized between test and control plasmas. Analysis of the FV gene showed that the thrombotic individuals had a complex genotype that included two novel point mutations c.529G>T and c.1250T>C resulting in FV E119X and FV I359T substitutions inherited on different alleles. Individuals in the kindred with FV E119X or FV I359T substitutions alone were asymptomatic. We suggest that the FV I359T substitution confers pro-thrombotic risk and APCR, but that this is only clinically manifest when co-inherited with the FV E119X allele. The FV I359T substitution creates a new consensus sequence for N-linked glycosylation within the FV heavy chain and we speculate that this abnormal glycosylation may disrupt activated protein C-mediated proteolysis of the variant FV and FVa.     

High prevalence of a mutation in the factor V gene within the U.K. population: relationship to activated protein C resistance and familial thrombosis

Summary. Recent findings have indicated the importance of factor V (FV) in causing resistance to activated protein C (APC) in a high proportion of patients with venous thrombosis. This prompted us to investigate whether resistance could be due to defective inactivation of FVa by APC. Consequently, we amplified a 3.2 kb fragment of the FV gene sequence encoding the heavy chain APC cleavage site. DNA analysis showed a guanine to adenine transition at nucleotide 1691 in all affected members of two families with inherited APC resistance associated with thrombosis and confirmed suspected homozygosity in two individuals. The mutation, in heterozygous form, was also found in ˜3.5% of our normal population (n = 144) and correlated with low APC resistance. The high prevalence of this mutation suggests that it may be a major contributory factor in early thrombosis.     

Management of bleeding in severe factor V deficiency with a factor V inhibitor

Factor V (FV) inhibitor arises rarely after using fresh frozen plasma (FFP) to treat inherited FV deficiency and is often a real therapeutic challenge. Here, we report a patient with a severe FV deficiency who developed such an inhibitor and was then treated with recombinant activated FVII (rFVIIa) and platelet concentrates (PC). Monitoring was assessed by thrombin generation assay (TGA). PC were more effective than rFVIIa in treating bleeding, but there was no correlation between the TGA results and clinical efficacy.     

Structural basis of thrombin-mediated factor V activation: the Glu666-Glu672 sequence is critical for processing at the heavy chain-B domain junction

Thrombin-catalyzed activation of coagulation factor V (FV) is an essential positive feedback reaction within the blood clotting system. Efficient processing at the N- (Arg(709)-Ser(710)) and C-terminal activation cleavage sites (Arg(1545)-Ser(1546)) requires initial substrate interactions with 2 clusters of positively charged residues on the proteinase surface, exosites I and II. We addressed the mechanism of activation of human factor V (FV) using peptides that cover the entire acidic regions preceding these cleavage sites, FV (657-709)/ (FVa2) and FV(1481-1545)/(FVa3). FVa2 appears to interact mostly with exosite I, while both exosites are involved in interactions with the C-terminal linker. The 1.7-? crystal structure of irreversibly inhibited thrombin bound to FVa2 unambiguously reveals docking of FV residues Glu(666)-Glu(672) to exosite I. These findings were confirmed in a second, medium-resolution structure of FVa2 bound to the benzamidine-inhibited proteinase. Our results suggest that the acidic A2-B domain linker is involved in major interactions with thrombin during cofactor activation, with its more N-terminal hirudin-like sequence playing a critical role. Modeling experiments indicate that FVa2, and likely also FVa3, wrap around thrombin in productive thrombin·FV complexes that cover a large surface of the activator to engage the active site.     

Acquired Coagulation Factor V Inhibitor That Was Successfully Treated with Oral Corticosteroid Therapy

Acquired coagulation factor V (FV) inhibitors are rare disorders in which antibodies against FV develop under various conditions. We herein report the case of a 71-year-old woman with FV inhibitor during radiochemotherapy for pancreatic cancer. Multiple purpuras suddenly appeared on her bilateral upper limbs with prolonged coagulation data (APTT 97.3 seconds). The FV activity was less than 3% and the FV inhibitor was positive (1.7 B.U./mL). Oral prednisolone induced a rapid normalization of the coagulation data and FV activity and a rapid disappearance of FV inhibitor within 7 days. Early diagnosis and treatment may therefore be important in cases of FV inhibitor.     

Coinheritance of Factor V (FV) Leiden enhances thrombin formation and is associated with a mild bleeding phenotype in patients homozygous for the FVII 9726+5G>A (FVII Lazio) mutation

We investigated the role of thrombophilic mutations as possible modifiers of the clinical phenotype in severe factor VII (FVII) deficiency. Among 7 patients homozygous for a cross-reacting material-negative (CRM-) FVII defect (9726+5G>A, FVII Lazio), the only asymptomatic individual carried FV Leiden. Differential modulation of FVII levels by intragenic polymorphisms was excluded by a FVII to factor X (FX) gene haplotype analysis. The coagulation efficiency in the FV Leiden carrier and a noncarrier was evaluated by measuring FXa, FVa, and thrombin generation after extrinsic activation of plasma in the absence and presence of activated protein C (APC). In both patients coagulation factor activation was much slower and resulted in significantly lower amounts of FXa and thrombin than in a normal control. However, more FXa and thrombin were formed in the plasma of the patient carrying FV Leiden than in the noncarrier, especially in the presence of APC. These results were confirmed in FV-FVII doubly deficient plasma reconstituted with purified normal FV or FV Leiden. The difference in thrombin generation between plasmas reconstituted with normal FV or FV Leiden gradually decreased at increasing FVII concentration. We conclude that coinheritance of FV Leiden increases thrombin formation and can improve the clinical phenotype in patients with severe FVII deficiency.     

Activated protein C resistance and thrombosis: molecular mechanisms of hypercoagulable state due to FVR506Q mutation.

Inherited resistance to activated protein C (APC) is the most common genetic risk factor of venous thrombosis. It is caused by a single point mutation in the factor (F)V gene which predicts replacement of Arg506 with a Gln (FVR506Q, FV: Q506 or FV Leiden). This mutation affects the function of the protein C system, a physiologically important natural anticoagulant pathway. APC inhibits coagulation by cleaving a limited number of peptide bonds in both intact and activated forms of factor V (FV/FVa) and factor VIII (FVIII/FVIIIa). Degradation of FVa by APC is stimulated by protein S, whereas inactivation of FVIIIa requires the synergistic cofactor function of protein S and FV proteolytically modified by APC. Thus, FV has the potential to express opposing functions, as a procoagulant after cleavage by thrombin or FXa and as an anticoagulant after cleavage by APC. The FVR506Q mutation not only confers partial resistance of FVa to APC but also impairs the degradation of FVIIIa because APC-mediated cleavage of FV at Arg506 is required for expression of the anticoagulant activity of FV. The impaired degradation of both FVIIIa and FVa yield a hypercoagulable state conferring a lifelong increased risk of thrombosis. The FV mutation is common in Caucasians, whereas it is rarely found among other groups worldwide. In patients with severe thrombophilia having other inherited defects such as deficiencies of protein S, protein C, or antithrombin, APC resistance is often found as a contributing genetic risk factor. Individuals with combined genetic defects have a high risk of thrombosis, and it is now generally accepted that thrombophilia is a multigenetic disease.     

High-titer idiopathic acquired factor V inhibitor patient showing decreased activities of multiple coagulation factors

A 72-year-old male presented with oral bleeding resulting from acquired factor V (FV) inhibitor. We observed abnormalities in prothrombin time (PT) (8%) and activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) (>200 seconds). FV activity was less than 3%, and a mixing test did not correlate with PT. FV inhibitor assay demonstrated 240 Bethesda units/ml. The patient also showed markedly decreased activity of Factors II (13%) and X (14%). Oral bleeding disappeared and coagulation abnormalities improved with prednisolone therapy. High titer FV inhibitor might affect coagulation assays even in a patient with normal factor activity.     

New insights into how blood clots: implications for the use of APTT and PT as coagulation screening tests and in monitoring of anticoagulant therapy.

Blood coagulation occurs efficiently on cell surfaces such as activated platelets and monocytes, and fibroblasts. It is initiated by limited amounts of tissue factor (TF) exposed at the sites of vascular injury that complexes with trace amounts of circulating factor VIIa (FVIIa). Additional FVIIa-TF complexes are formed from FVII-TF involving positive feedback loops, including FVIIa-TF as well as factors Xa and IXa as they are formed in subsequent steps. For sustained normal coagulation to proceed, effective in vivo activation of factor X requires the participation of factor IXa generated via the FVIIa-TF complex. This may, in part, be due to effective inhibition of factor Xa and FVIIa-TF complex by tissue factor pathway inhibitor that results in blockage of direct activation of factor X by the FVIIa-TF complex. Additional generation of factor Xa at injury sites may then proceed via the FIXa-VIIIa pathway. Thrombin generated from prothrombin via complex formation of prothrombin with FXa and FVa on phospholipid surfaces (prothrombinase complex) powerfully accelerates coagulation by activation of FVIII and FV, and sustains coagulation through activation of FXI. Thus, in light of our current understanding of how blood clots in vivo, it is clear that both prothrombin time (PT) and activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) are highly artificial in vitro systems with major limitations. Nevertheless, these tests are quite useful as global screening tests for abnormalities in the intrinsic or extrinsic, as well as common, pathways of coagulation and for monitoring of anticoagulant therapy.     

A case of factor V inhibitor

A 57-year-old married Chinese male without a family history of bleeding disorder was presented with severe hemorrhagic tendency and was subsequently found to be suffering from an acquired inhibitor against coagulation factor V. The prolonged prothrombin time and activated partial thromboplastin time could not be corrected by the addition of normal plasma. Subnormal value of factor V level was noted accompanied with an abnormal platelet factor III availability test. With specific antisera and staphylococcal protein A, the inhibitor was characterized as an IgG(lambda) antibody. The hemorrhagic tendency and abnormal laboratory data were corrected after treating the patient with platelet concentrate transfusion and cyclophosphamide.     

A cell-based model of thrombin generation

We have developed a cell-based model of thrombin generation using activated monocytes as a source of tissue factor (TF) and platelets serving as a surface for thrombin generation. Monocytes are activated by lipopolysaccharide and express cell-bound TF. To these are added physiologic (plasma) concentrations of all the plasma procoagulants as well as TF pathway inhibitor, antithrombin, and C1-esterase inhibitor. Coagulation takes place in microtiter wells and is initiated by factor VIIa (FVIIa) and calcium. At time intervals, aliquots are removed, platelet activation is measured by the expression of P-selectin, and thrombin generation is measured by chromogenic assay. In addition, one can measure the activation of FIX, FX, FVIII, FV, and FXI. Initial results reveal that the FVIIa-TF interaction results in the activation of FX to FXa and FIX to FIXa. FXa stays in the vicinity of the TF-bearing cell and, in the presence of FVa, converts a small amount of prothrombin to thrombin on the surface of the TF cell. This small amount of thrombin is not sufficient to clot fibrinogen, but is sufficient to activate platelets and FVIII, FV, and FXI. Following platelet activation, FVIIIa, FVa, and FXa occupy sites on the activated platelet surface. FIXa, activated by TF-FVIIa, does not remain on the TF cell, but converts FX to FXa on the platelet surface. FXIa acts to boost FIXa generation on the activated platelet, increasing FXa and subsequent thrombin generation. We have also shown that activated protein C does not inactivate Va on the platelet surface but rather on endothelial cell surfaces.     

False negative factor V Leiden assay following allogeneic stem cell transplant

We report a case where a phenotypic test (an activity assay for activated protein C resistance) correctly indicated that the patient had an abnormality, whereas the initial genetic test (a PCR-based DNA assay used to detect the mutation in the FV gene) incorrectly indicated that the patient did not. The apparent false negative result of the DNA-based test was due to the use of peripheral blood leucocytes for DNA analysis. The patient had undergone a stem cell transplant several months before, and the leucocytes in her blood were derived from the stem cell donor, which lacked the FV defect.     

Use of a generally applicable tissue factor--dependent factor V assay to detect activated protein C-resistant factor Va in patients receiving warfarin and in patients with a lupus anticoagulant

The original activated partial thromboplastin time-based assay for activated protein C (APC)-resistant factor Va (FVa) requires carefully prepared fresh plasma and cannot be used in patients receiving warfarin or in patients with antiphospholipid antibodies. A new test is described here that circumvents these limitations and distinguishes without overlap heterozygotes for APC-resistant FVa from persons with normal FV. A diluted test plasma is incubated with an FV-deficient substrate plasma and tissue factor and then clotted with Ca2+ or Ca2+ plus APC. Test results are independent of the FV level or the dilution of the test plasma used. Of 39 controls, 37 gave normal results. Two controls (5%) gave results indicative of APC resistant FVa and on DNA analysis were found to be heterozygous for FV R506Q. Twenty of 21 randomly selected patients receiving warfarin gave normal results. In the single patient with abnormal results, heterozygous FV R506Q was confirmed by DNA analysis. Two of 15 patients with protein S deficiency and 5 of 29 patients with a lupus anticoagulant had abnormal results. APC resistance caused by FV R506Q was confirmed in the five of these seven patients available for DNA analysis. APC-resistant FVa was also detected in 10 of 21 (46%) stored plasma from unrelated patients with venous thrombosis and negative earlier evaluation for a lupus anticoagulant or a deficiency of protein C, protein S, or antithrombin, which confirms a high incidence of this defect among patients with venous thrombosis.     

Type I coagulation factor V deficiency caused by compound heterozygous mutation of F5 gene

A 16-year-old Chinese female with prolonged bleeding after surgery has been studied. Routine clotting tests revealed a prolonged activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT; 126.6 s) and prothrombin time (PT; 42.8 s). The coagulation factors activities were normal except for factor V, which was only 0.3% of normal. DNA analysis of the FV gene revealed five nucleotide substitutions in exons, including two silent mutations (G327A and A5112G), one polymorphism (G1628A), a G1348T missense mutation and 4887 approximately 8delG. These abnormalities were associated with her FV deficiency, perhaps by causing a Gly392Cys substitution in FV amino acid sequence or by introducing a premature stop codon at amino acid position 1390. This is the third case in which FV deficiency is caused by compound heterozygous mutation of F5 gene, and is the first report from a Chinese family.     

Homology Models of the C Domains of Blood Coagulation Factors V and VIII: A Proposed Membrane Binding Mode for FV and FVIII C2 Domains

ABSTRACT: We present homology models of the C domains of coagulation factors V (FV) and VIII (FVIII). Using a threading approach, we identified the binding domain of galactose oxidase as an appropriate template for each C domain. The C1 and C2 domains of FV associate to form an elongated cylinder of 80Å long and 30Å diameter. The folding unit is a β-sandwich with a long axis of 40Å and a diameter of 30Å. The current model allows us to propose a membrane binding mode for the C2 domains of FV and FVIII with three major characteristics: 1) solvent-exposed hydrophobic side chains from three loops at one end of the β-sandwich are buried in the hydrophobic layer of the outer phospholipid leaflet; 2) a crown of positively charged residues is located in the polar zone of the phospholipid head groups; and 3) the long axis of the β-sandwich of the C2 domain is perpendicular to the plane of the membrane. This proposal satisfies experimentally observed characteristics of membrane binding for the C2 domain and the light chain of FVa.     

The use of activated recombinant coagulation factor VII during haemarthroses and synovectomy in a patient with congenital severe factor V deficiency

Factor V deficiency is a rare hereditary bleeding disorder. Currently, FV concentrates are not available, and the treatment of spontaneous bleeding or bleeding associated with invasive procedures is transfusion of fresh frozen plasma (FFP). However, FFP transfusion can lead to the development of inhibitor to FV, and is associated with several potential transfusion reactions including allergic reactions. We report a patient with congenital severe FV deficiency with repeated haemarthroses of a shoulder joint, and progressively severe allergic reactions to FFP transfusions. In addition, the patient also developed acute pulmonary oedema. Activated recombinant coagulation factor VII (rFVIIa) was used as an alternative haemostatic agent to FFP. We describe the use of rFVIIa in this patient during haemarthroses, synovectomy, and physiotherapy.     

Progress in the understanding of the protein C anticoagulant pathway

A natural anticoagulant pathway denoted the protein C system provides specific and efficient control of blood coagulation. Protein C is the key component of the system and circulates in the blood as a zymogen to an anticoagulant serine protease. Activation of protein C is achieved on the surface of endothelial cells by thrombin bound to the membrane protein thrombomodulin. The endothelial protein C receptor stimulates the activation of protein C on the endothelium. Activated protein C (APC) modulates blood coagulation by cleaving a limited number of peptide bonds in factor VIIIa (FVIIIa) and factor Va (FVa), cofactors in the activation of factor X and prothrombin, respectively. Vitamin K-dependent protein S stimulates the APC-mediated regulation of coagulation. Not only is protein S involved in the degradation of FVIIIa, but so is FV, which in recent years has been found to be a Janus-faced protein with both procoagulant and anticoagulant potentials. A number of genetic defects affecting the anticoagulant function of the protein C system, eg, APC resistance (Arg506Gln or FV Leiden) and deficiencies of protein C and protein S constitute major risk factors of venous thrombosis. The protein C system also has anti-inflammatory and antiapoptotic potentials, the molecular mechanisms of which are beginning to be unraveled. APC has emerged in recent years as a useful therapeutic compound in the treatment of severe septic shock. The beneficial effect of APC is believed be due to both its anticoagulant and its anti-inflammatory properties.     

Function of the activated protein C (APC) autolysis loop in activated FVIII inactivation

Activated protein C (APC) binds to its substrates activated factor V (FVa) and activated factor VIII (FVIIIa) with a basic exosite that consists of loops 37, 60, 70 and the autolysis loop. These loops have a high density of basic residues, resulting in a positive charge on the surface of APC. Many of these residues are important in the interaction of APC with FVa and FVIIIa. The current study focused on the function of the autolysis loop in the interaction with FVIIIa. This loop was previously shown to interact with FVa, and it inhibits APC inactivation by plasma serpins. Charged residues of the autolysis loop were individually mutated to alanine and the activity of these mutants was assessed in functional FVIIIa inactivation assays. The autolysis loop was functionally important for FVIIIa inactivation. Mutation of R306, K311 and R314 each resulted in significantly reduced FVIIIa inactivation. The inactivating cleavages of FVIIIa at R336 and R562 were affected equally by the mutations. Protein S and FV stimulated cleavage at R562 more than cleavage at R336, independent of mutations in the autolysis loop. Together, these results confirmed that the autolysis loop plays a significant role as part of the basic exosite on APC in the interaction with FVIIIa.     

Acquired factor V inhibitor in a patient with a mechanical aortic valve under warfarin therapy

An 84-year-old woman under warfarin therapy, who had undergone mechanical valve replacement 29 months previously, developed coagulation abnormalities after antibiotic treatment for pyelonephritis. Laboratory findings included PT at 47.6 sec, activated thromboplastin time (APTT) at 147 sec, factor V (FV) activity of 4% and FV inhibitor of 8 BU. Although overt bleeding was not observed, administration of prednisolone was started. Her coagulation abnormalities were rapidly normalized. It was later determined that the patient had received bovine thrombin at surgery. The presence of a FV inhibitor should be considered in the differential diagnosis in patients demonstrating an unexpected prolongation of PT under warfarin therapy following surgery.