Protein-protein interaction (PPI) network analysis also consistently pointed to the same pathway (String, version 11.5) (Fig. 2f), and prothrombin (F2 gene encodes the prothrombin, also known as coagulation factor II), the thrombin proenzyme, was the most upregulated protein (stroke/control ratio = 10.88, p < 0.0001, Student’s t test, Fig. 2g and Supplementary Fig. S1a), which was further confirmed by western blotting (Fig. 2h). Here, F2 is linked to Stroke.