Evolutionary conservation of the allosteric activation of factor VIIa by tissue factor in lamprey

Essentials

• Tissue factor (TF) enhances factor VIIa (FVIIa) activity through structural and dynamic changes.
• We analyzed conservation of TF‐activated FVIIa allosteric networks in extant vertebrate lamprey.
• Lamprey Tf/FVIIa molecular dynamics show conserved Tf‐induced structural/dynamic FVIIa changes.
• Lamprey Tf activation of FVIIa allosteric networks follows molecular pathways similar to human.

Summary

Background

Previous studies have provided insight into the molecular basis of human tissue factor (TF) activation of activated factor VII (FVIIa). TF‐induced allosteric networks of FVIIa activation have been rationalized through analysis of the dynamic changes and residue connectivities in the human soluble TF (sTF)/FVIIa complex structure during molecular dynamics (MD) simulation. Evolutionary conservation of the molecular mechanisms for TF‐induced allosteric FVIIa activation between humans and extant vertebrate jawless fish (lampreys), where blood coagulation emerged more than 500 million years ago, is unknown and of considerable interest.

Objective

To model the sTf/FVIIa complex from cloned Petromyzon marinus lamprey sequences, and with comparisons to human sTF/FVlla investigate conservation of allosteric mechanisms of FVIIa activity enhancement by soluble TF using MD simulations.

Methods

Full‐length cDNAs of lamprey tf and f7 were cloned and characterized. Comparative models of lamprey sTf/FVIIa complex and free FVIIa were determined based on constructed human sTF/FVIIa complex and free FVIIa models, used in full‐atomic MD simulations, and characterized using dynamic network analysis approaches.

Results

Allosteric paths of correlated motion from Tf contact points in lamprey sTf/FVIIa to the FVIIa active site were determined and quantified, and were found to encompass residue–residue interactions along significantly similar paths compared with human.

Conclusions

Despite low conservation of residues between lamprey and human proteins, 30% TF and 39% FVII, the structural and protein dynamic effects of TF activation of FVIIa appear conserved and, moreover, present in extant vertebrate proteins from 500 million years ago when TF/FVIIa‐initiated extrinsic pathway blood coagulation emerged.