The versatile role of the contact system in cardiovascular disease, inflammation, sepsis and cancer

The human contact system consists of plasma proteins, which - after contact to foreign surfaces - are bound to them, thereby activating the zymogens of the system into enzymes. This activation mechanism gave the system its name - contact system. It is considered as a procoagulant and proinflammatory...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Sonja Oehmcke-Hecht, Peggy Berlin, Brigitte Müller-Hilke, Bernd Kreikemeyer, Praveen Vasudevan, Larissa Henze, Valeria Khaimov, Brigitte Vollmar, Robert David, Claudia Maletzki
Format: article
Language:EN
Published: Elsevier 2022
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Online Access:https://doaj.org/article/69aca1565cde4d59bfde1a3f6acdc711
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Summary:The human contact system consists of plasma proteins, which - after contact to foreign surfaces - are bound to them, thereby activating the zymogens of the system into enzymes. This activation mechanism gave the system its name - contact system. It is considered as a procoagulant and proinflammatory response mechanism, as activation finally leads to the generation of fibrin and bradykinin. To date, no physiological processes have been described that are mediated by contact activation. However, contact system factors play a pathophysiological role in numerous diseases, such as cardiovascular diseases, arthritis, colitis, sepsis, and cancer. Contact system factors are therefore an interesting target for new therapeutic options in different clinical conditions.