Thrombin inhibitors from haematophagous animals

Abstract

To facilitate the feeding of blood, hematophagous animals use pharmacologically active molecules to ensure free-flowing of blood at both the feeding site and within the digestion system. A number of these exogenous anticoagulants have been identified and characterized in recent years. Among them, inhibitors of thrombin form the largest group both in terms of number and diversity. To date, more than 30 different exogenous thrombin inhibitors from hematophagous animals, grouped into at least 15 unique structural classes, have been reported in the literature. In this chapter, we discuss five representative classes in detail with insights from their high resolution structures in complex with thrombin.