Prevention of complement activation on the homologous cell membrane of nucleated cells as well as erythrocytes

Abstract

A C3b receptor, a glycoprotein with a molecular weight of 205 kDa (gp205) on human erythrocytes (E^hu), has been claimed to restrict the activation of human complement via the alternative complement pathway (ACP), thereby inhibiting the activation of the ACP even on neuraminidase (Nase)-treated E^hu. However, the Nase-treated E^hu were sensitive to hemolysis by guinea pig complement via ACP activation, although the C3b receptors on E^hu can react with guinea pig C3b. Furthermore, HeLa cells which had no detectable C3b receptor did not became reactive with guinea pig ACP. On the contrary, Nase treatment of guinea pig erythrocytes (E^gp) as well as guinea pig line 10 tumor cells, which have no detectable C3b receptor, could not make those cells reactive with the homologous guinea pig ACP although they became reactive with human and rabbit ACP. Similarly, rabbit E did not become reactive with the homologous rabbit ACP following Nase treatment. Nase-treated E^gp preincubated with human serum in the presence of EDTA were also not lysed by guinea pig serum. Therefore the unreactiveness of Nase-treated cell membrane with homologous ACP was not merely due to the absence of antibody to cell membrane in the homologous serum. There may be a membrane inhibitor which preferentially interacts with homologous complement to circumvent undesirable complement activation on the homologous cell membrane.