Fibrin imaging with peptides

Higher-resolution images reveal the detailed structure of the fibrin monomer, how the fibrin monomers come together, and how this assembly is facilitated by removal of the fibrinopeptides. The homologous (3 and y chains have globular domains at the carboxyl-terminal ends (Figure 10.40). These domains have binding holes that interact with peptides. The p domain is specific for sequences of the form HaN -Gly-His-Arg-, whereas the y domain binds HaN -Gly-Pro-Arg-. Exactly these sequences (some-... 

If the peptide is labeled with a fluorescent tag (e.g. tetramethyl-ifaodamine, TMR) then fibrin present in clot can be visualized by fluorescence microscopy. Figure 10 shows a confocal microscopy image of a platelet rich plasma clot that has been treated with a TMR-tagged fibrin binding peptide. 

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