Protein Z (PZ or PROZ) is a

Protein Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, respo ...

in humans which is encoded by the ''PROZ''

gene In biology, the word gene (from , ; "...Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a ba ...

. Protein Z is a member of the

coagulation cascade Coagulation, also known as clotting, is the process by which blood changes from a liquid to a gel, forming a blood clot. It potentially results in hemostasis, the cessation of blood loss from a damaged vessel, followed by repair. The mechanism o ...

, the group of blood proteins that leads to the formation of

blood clot A thrombus (plural thrombi), colloquially called a blood clot, is the final product of the blood coagulation step in hemostasis. There are two components to a thrombus: aggregated platelets and red blood cells that form a plug, and a mesh of c ...

s. It is a

glycoprotein Glycoproteins are proteins which contain oligosaccharide chains covalently attached to amino acid side-chains. The carbohydrate is attached to the protein in a cotranslational or posttranslational modification. This process is known as glycos ...

. Protein Z functions to inhibit blood coagulation by binding to an inhibitor. It is a

GLA domain Vitamin K-dependent carboxylation/gamma-carboxyglutamic (GLA) domain is a protein domain that contains post-translational modifications of many glutamate residues by vitamin K-dependent carboxylation to form γ-carboxyglutamate (Gla). Proteins wit ...

protein and thus

Vitamin K Vitamin K refers to structurally similar, fat-soluble vitamers found in foods and marketed as dietary supplements. The human body requires vitamin K for post-synthesis modification of certain proteins that are required for blood coagulation ...

-dependent, and its functionality is therefore impaired in

warfarin Warfarin, sold under the brand name Coumadin among others, is a medication that is used as an anticoagulant (blood thinner). It is commonly used to prevent blood clots such as deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism, and to prevent strok ...

therapy.

Physiology

Although it is not enzymatically active, it is structurally related to several

serine protease Serine proteases (or serine endopeptidases) are enzymes that cleave peptide bonds in proteins. Serine serves as the nucleophilic amino acid at the (enzyme's) active site. They are found ubiquitously in both eukaryotes and prokaryotes. ...

s of the coagulation cascade: Factors VII, IX, X and

Protein C Protein C, also known as autoprothrombin IIA and blood coagulation factor XIX, is a zymogen, that is, an inactive enzyme. The activated form plays an important role in regulating anticoagulation, inflammation, and apoptosis, cell death and ...

. The

carboxyglutamate Carboxyglutamic acid (or the conjugate base, carboxyglutamate), is an uncommon amino acid introduced into proteins by a post-translational carboxylation of glutamic acid residues. This modification is found, for example, in clotting factors and ot ...

residues (which require Vitamin K) bind Protein Z to

phospholipid Phospholipids, are a class of lipids whose molecule has a hydrophilic "head" containing a phosphate group and two hydrophobic "tails" derived from fatty acids, joined by an alcohol residue (usually a glycerol molecule). Marine phospholipids typ ...

surfaces. The main role of Protein Z appears to be the degradation of

Factor Xa Factor X, also known by the eponym Stuart–Prower factor, is an enzyme () of the coagulation cascade. It is a serine endopeptidase (protease group S1, PA clan). Factor X is synthesized in the liver and requires vitamin K for its synthesis. Fac ...

. This is done by

Protein Z-related protease inhibitor Protein Z-dependent protease inhibitor (ZPI) is a protein circulating in the blood which inhibits factors Xa and XIa of the coagulation cascade. It is a member of the class of the serine protease inhibitors (serpins). Its name implies that it re ...

(ZPI), but the reaction is accelerated 1000-fold by the presence of Protein Z. Oddly, ZPI also degrades

Factor XI Factor XI or plasma thromboplastin antecedent is the zymogen form of factor XIa, one of the enzymes of the coagulation cascade. Like many other coagulation factors, it is a serine protease. In humans, Factor XI is encoded by the ''F11'' gene. ...

, but this reaction does not require the presence of Protein Z. ZPI activated by Protein Z does not appear to happen because of its conformation, but proximity to each other. When Protein Z in bound to ZPI, it will bind to the same phospholipid surface as Factor Xa. This is what promotes the inhibition of Factor Xa. In some studies, deficiency states have been associated with a propensity to

thrombosis Thrombosis (from Ancient Greek "clotting") is the formation of a blood clot inside a blood vessel, obstructing the flow of blood through the circulatory system. When a blood vessel (a vein or an artery) is injured, the body uses platelets (thro ...

. Others, however, link it to

bleeding tendency In medicine (hematology), bleeding diathesis is an unusual susceptibility to bleed (hemorrhage) mostly due to hypocoagulability (a condition of irregular and slow blood clotting), in turn caused by a coagulopathy (a defect in the system of coagula ...

; there is no clear explanation for this, as it acts physiologically as an inhibitor, and deficiency would logically have led to a predisposition for

Genetics

It is 62

kDa The dalton or unified atomic mass unit (symbols: Da or u) is a non-SI unit of mass widely used in physics and chemistry. It is defined as of the mass of an unbound neutral atom of carbon-12 in its nuclear and electronic ground state and at re ...

large and 396

amino acid Amino acids are organic compounds that contain both amino and carboxylic acid functional groups. Although hundreds of amino acids exist in nature, by far the most important are the alpha-amino acids, which comprise proteins. Only 22 alpha am ...

s long. The ''PROZ''

has been linked to the thirteenth

chromosome A chromosome is a long DNA molecule with part or all of the genetic material of an organism. In most chromosomes the very long thin DNA fibers are coated with packaging proteins; in eukaryotic cells the most important of these proteins are ...

(13q34). It has four domains: a GLA-rich region, two EGF-like domains and a trypsin-like domain. It lacks the

serine Serine (symbol Ser or S) is an α-amino acid that is used in the biosynthesis of proteins. It contains an α-amino group (which is in the protonated − form under biological conditions), a carboxyl group (which is in the deprotonated − form un ...

residue that would make it catalytically active as a

History

Protein Z was first isolated in

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult mal ...

blood by Christopher Prowse and Peter Esnouf in 1977, and Broze & Miletich determined it in human plasma in 1984. Protein Z found in humans was given the same name as the one found in cattle for a few reasons. When looking at these isolated proteins it was found that they both have similar molecular weight, a similar composition of amino acids, and a similar Amino Terminal sequences. These similarities in molecular composition of the protein found in cattle and humans was great enough that it can be concluded they was the same protein. When Protein Z was first discovered, it was theorized to be a form of Factor X instead of its own individual protein. Research had to be done to isolate this protein to find out if it was a form of Factor X or not. To test this, Vitamin K dependents were removed from the sample by adsorption to barium citrate, then an ion exchange chromatography was performed. This process showed that there was no Factor X in the isolated protein. The purified Protein Z in this experiment was distinct from Factor X, proving it was a separate protein.

Structure

Structural analysis of Protein Z will allow better understanding of its function. The

Ramachandran plot In biochemistry, a Ramachandran plot (also known as a Rama plot, a Ramachandran diagram or a �,ψplot), originally developed in 1963 by G. N. Ramachandran, C. Ramakrishnan, and V. Sasisekharan, is a way to visualize energetically allowed region ...

for Protein Z indicates it will form alpha helices. The final structure, all alpha domain, was determined by x-ray diffraction. It consists of chain A and B, which are both helix-loop-helix motifs. The secondary structures of this protein are color coded in the image in the top left; pink represents the strands, yellow represents alpha helices and white is the coils.

Health

There are many reasons that Protein Z is important to our bodies and our health. In pregnancy it is vital that the protein is functioning correctly. It has been found that if it isn't functioning correctly, it can lead to fetal death or hypersensitive disorders in pregnancy. This happens because when the levels of this protein drop too low, it can lead to fetal growth restrictions. Another possible effect is having a high sensitivity to this protein which could correlate with diabetes. In women diagnosed with ovarian cancers, it was found the protein was inhibiting Factor Xa which happens because there is a lower regulation of this protein in cancer cells.

References

External links

Human Protein Reference Database
{{Coagulation Coagulation system