Tissue Factor and Tissue Factor Pathway Inhibitor in Coronary Atherosclerotic Plaque

Tissue factor(TF) is a receptor for factor FVII/FVIIa on a cell surface.It is an important initiator of the exdogenous coagulation cascade,and TF activates exdogenous coagulation cascade and causes thrombosis.Human tissue factor pathway inhibitor(TFPI) is a member of the Kunitz-type serine protease inhibitor family,which is divided into TFPI-1 and TFPI-2.The key function of TFPI-1 is anti-coagulation,while TFPI-2 as a broad-spectrum serine protease inhibitor can function as an MMP inhibitor.The differences between TFPI-1 and TFPI-2 lead to discrepancies in the roles they play in a variety of pathological processes in coronary atherosclerotic plaque.This article reviews recent progress in the related research.