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Lepirudin


Mechanism of action:

Lepirudin is a direct thrombin inhibitor and belongs to the class of recombinant hirudin. Lepirudin binds simultaneously to both the active site of thrombin and the fibrinogen-binding site (exosite 1), forming a highly stable complex. As a result, thrombin can no longer convert fibrinogen into fibrin, thereby reducing thrombin-mediated coagulation cascade activity and thrombus formation.

Reference(s):

1. Smythe MA et al. (2005). A comparison of lepirudin and argatroban outcomes. Clin Appl Thromb Hemost. 


2. Tardy B et al. (2006). Predictive factors for thrombosis and major bleeding in an observational study in 181 patients with heparin-induced thrombocytopenia treated with lepirudin. Blood. 


3. Lubenow N et al. (2005). Lepirudin in patients with heparin-induced thrombocytopenia - results of the third prospective study (HAT-3) and a combined analysis of HAT-1, HAT-2, and HAT-3. J Thromb Haemost.

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