Fibrinogen

Function

Fibrinogen is a glycoprotein found in the blood that is converted into fibrin during blood coagulation. Fibrinogen is cleaved by another protein, thrombin, exposing knobs A and B to form fibrin. ^[1] The fibrin forms clots to prevent excessive bleeding from wounds sustained. Clotting factors, like factor XIII, are often linked to fibrin. ^[2]

3D Printed Physical Model of Fibrinogen

Shown below is a 3D printed physical model of Fibrinogen. The structure is shown as an alpha carbon backbone colored by chain, with the three chains of each copy of fibrinogen colored yellow, blue and purple.

The MSOE Center for BioMolecular Modeling

The MSOE Center for BioMolecular Modeling uses 3D printing technology to create physical models of protein and molecular structures, making the invisible molecular world more tangible and comprehensible. To view more protein structure models, visit our Model Gallery.

Structural insights

Fibrinogen is composed of 2 copies each of 3 non-identical chains α, β, γ (, , ).