Plasminogen activator

The activated form of plasminogen (PLG) is plasmin, which dissolves the fibrin of blood clots and acts as a proteolytic factor in a variety of other processes including embryonic development, tissue remodeling, tumor invasion and inflammation.

Snake venom proteins contain a number of proteins that impair hemostasis and included among these are toxins that degrade fibrin clots. A few of them indirectly provoke this degradation by activating plasminogen.

Figure: Last steps of the blood coagulation cascade and activity of plasmin ("activated plasminogen") as a protein that converts fibrin into soluble products.