Morrissey Lab

The research conducted in our laboratory focuses on understanding how cells regulate blood clotting in health and disease. The blood clotting system is activated when an enzyme (a specific plasma serine protease known as factor VIIa) binds to a particular integral membrane protein (known as tissue factor, or TF) on cell surfaces. The TF-VIIa-membrane complex triggers the blood clotting cascade by activating two plasma serine protease zymogens (factor IX and factor X) via limited proteolysis. Thrombosis is the formation of unwanted blood clots inside arteries and veins, which represents the leading cause of disability and death in the world. Tissue factor is the protein that triggers thrombosis in many–possibly most–disease settings. For this reason, it is critically important to understand how the initiation of coagulation is controlled via tissue factor and factor VIIa.