Abstract
The fibrinolytic function of earthworm protease-III-1 (EfP-III-1) has
been studied in recent years. Here, we found that EfP-III-1 acted not
only in fibrinogenolysis, but also in fibrogenesis.
We have used EfP-III-1 to hydrolyze fibrinogen, and to activate
plasminogen and prothrombin. Based on the N-terminal sequences of the hydrolytic
fragments, EfP-III-1 was showed to specifically recognize the carboxylic
sites of arginine and lysine. Analyses by fibrinogenolysis mapping and amino acid
sequencing revealed that the isozyme could cleave the alpha, beta, and gamma chains
of fibrinogen, showing a high