When blood vessels are injured, fibrinogen is converted to an insoluble fibrin matrix that acts as the scaffold for blood clot formation. During wound healing, fibrin is dissolved and the clot is removed.
Cardiovascular disease can arise when either clot formation or clot dissolution is abnormal.
Biochemical data demonstrate that fibrinogen affects both these processes. Further, epidemiological data indicate that elevated plasma fibrinogen is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. We study these multiple roles of fibrinogen using three approaches. We examine patients with cardiovascular disease to determine whether fibrinogen abnormalities are linked to clinical symptoms. Using protein engineering, we prepare variant fibrinogens, and test the functional effects of the changes in biochemical assays.