Three genes, fibrinogen-␣ (FBG ␣ ), - , and -␥ , encode proteins that make up the mature FBG protein complex. This complex is secreted from the liver and plays a key role in coagulation in response to vascular disruption. We identified all three FBG genes in a screen designed to isolate genes that are regulated by the farnesoid X receptor (FXR; Supplementary key words farnesoid X receptor • chenodeoxycholic acid • 3-(2,6-dichlorophenyl)-4-(3 Ј -carboxy-2-chloro-stilben-4-yl)-oxymethyl-5-isopropyl-isoxazole • nuclear hormone receptor Secretion of fibrinogen (FBG) from hepatocytes into the blood is a key component of the coagulation pathway that ultimately leads to the formation of a fibrous clot in response to vascular disruption (1). The mature FBG protein is a hexamer that is formed from disulfide-linked equimolar ratios of three peptides encoded by the FBG ␣ , - , and -␥ genes (2). FBG expression is restricted almost entirely to the hepatocyte (3). In response to disruption of the vasculature, a signaling cascade originating from either the intrinsic or the extrinsic coagulation pathway leads to the activation of thrombin, which then cleaves small peptides, termed A and B, from the FBG hexamer, allowing fibrin to form (3). Fibrin can self-associate to form filaments that aggregate to form a meshwork of interconnected thick fibers that are a critical component of the clot (3). The activation of thrombin, and thus the production of fibrin, is regulated by a series of enzymes that respond to disruption of the vasculature to initiate the blood coagulation process (3). The production of fibrin is also regulated at the transcriptional level by expression of the FBG ␣ , - , and -␥ genes in the hepatocyte (4).NR1H4The three FBG genes are clustered in a 65 kb region on human chromosome 4 (5, 6). Hepatic-specific expression is achieved by the requirement for the liver-enriched transcription factor HNF-1 (7, 8). Expression of the three FBG genes is tightly regulated in a coordinated manner so that the expression of all three genes is induced in response to the same signal (9). Induction of rat and human FBG mRNAs occurs as part of the acute phase response that is activated by interleukin-6 (IL-6) and glucocorticoid signaling pathways (9-11). The coordinated regulation of all three FBG genes in response to IL-6 and glucocorticoids is achieved by the presence of distinct transcription factor binding sites flanking each of the three FBG genes rather than through a single common regulatory element (4, 10, 11).Abbreviations:apoC-II, apolipoprotein C-II; CDCA, chenodeoxycholic acid; DR-1, direct repeat with a 1 bp spacer; ER-8, everted repeat with an 8 bp spacer; FBG, fibrinogen; FXR, farnesoid X receptor; FXRE, farnesoid X receptor response element; GW4064, 3-(2,6-dichlorophenyl)-4-(3 Ј -carboxy-2-chloro-stilben-4-yl)-oxymethyl-5-isopropyl-isoxazole; hFXR, human farnesoid X receptor; hRXR ␣ , human retinoid X receptor ␣ ; I-BABP, ileal bile acid binding protein; IL-6, interleukin-6; IR-1, inverted repeat with a 1 ...