Role of accessory components in the activation of vitamin K-dependent coagulation factors.

Kinetic studies of prothrombin activation and intrinsic factor X activation carried out in the absence and presence of phospholipids and the protein cofactors Va or VIIIa have provided insight in the mechanism by which the accessory components enhance coagulation factor activation. In intrinsic factor X and prothrombin activation, phospholipids cause a drastic drop of Km for the substrates factor X and prothrombin, whereas the protein cofactors factor Va and factor VIIIa increase Vmax of the prothrombin- and factor X-activating reactions. The mode of action of factor Va in prothrombin activation is however somewhat more complex. Besides its stimulatory effect on the catalytic activity of factor Xa, Factor Va also plays an important role in the assembly of the prothrombin-activating complex at phospholipid surfaces especially when the latter have a low affinity for vitamin-K-dependent coagulation factors. This effect is likely accomplished by promoting the binding of both prothrombin and factor Xa to the procoagulant surface.