Primary Citation of Related Structures:   1FNS
PubMed Abstract: 
Platelet participation in hemostasis and arterial thrombosis requires the binding of glycoprotein (GP) Ibalpha to von Willebrand factor (vWF). Hemodynamic forces enhance this interaction, an effect mimicked by the substitution I546V in the vWF A1 domain. A water molecule becomes internalized near the deleted Ile methyl group ...
Platelet participation in hemostasis and arterial thrombosis requires the binding of glycoprotein (GP) Ibalpha to von Willebrand factor (vWF). Hemodynamic forces enhance this interaction, an effect mimicked by the substitution I546V in the vWF A1 domain. A water molecule becomes internalized near the deleted Ile methyl group. The change in hydrophobicity of the local environment causes positional changes propagated over a distance of 27 A. As a consequence, a major reorientation of a peptide plane occurs in a surface loop involved in GP Ibalpha binding. This distinct vWF conformation shows increased platelet adhesion and provides a structural model for the initial regulation of thrombus formation.
Related Citations: 
Crystal Structure of the Von Willebrand Factor A1 D Domain in Complex with the Function Blocking Nmc-4 DOMAIN IN COMPLEX WITH THE FUNCTION BLOCKING NMC-4 FAB Celikel, R., Varughese, K.I., Madhusudan, Yoshioka, A., Ware, J., Ruggeri, Z.M. (1998) Nat Struct Biol 5: 189
Organizational Affiliation: 
Roon Research Center for Arteriosclerosis and Thrombosis, Division of Experimental Hemostasis and Thrombosis, Department of Molecular and Experimental Medicine, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, California 92037, USA.