Skip to main content
. 2023 Jul 28;102(9):972–978. doi: 10.1177/00220345231171837

Figure 2.

Figure 2.

Fibrinolysis and regulatory mechanisms. (A) While fibrin is the main physiological target of plasmin (Pln), fibrin also facilitates the fibrinolytic process. This self-directed cleavage process involves facilitating of tissue plasminogen activator (tPA)–mediated activation of plasminogen (PLG), enabling pro–urokinase plasminogen activator (uPA) activation by plasmin to allow for a PLG and pro-uPA feedback activation cycle and, finally, the protection of plasmin from α2-antiplasmin inhibition. (B) The fibrinolysis process is tightly regulated by (i) α2-antiplasmin-mediated inactivation of Pln, (ii) plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1)–mediated inhibition of tPA and uPA, and (iii) thrombin activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor (TAFI)–mediated blockage of tPA and PLG scaffolding to fibrin.