3. LEARNING OBJECTIVE
• Define complement
• Components of complement
• Activation of complement
• Check points
• Deficiencies
4. HISTORY
• Buchner (1889) – Destruction of bactericidal activity
of serum when heated at 55 C for one hour.
• Pfeiffer phenomenon (1894)- Lysis of cholera vibrio –
Immunised guinea pig.
• Bordet – Heat stable factor & Heat labile factor
( Alexine)
• Ehrlich – Complement for the heat labile factor.
5. PROPERTIES OF COMPLEMENT
• Omnipresent – all living things.
• Non specific and inter-species reactable.
• 5% of the normal serum proteins
• Destroyed when heated at 56 C for 30 minutes.
6. • Never ever increased by immunisation.
• They are antibody related ; not antigen.
• Normally in inactivated form; Activated
by Ag – Ab combination.
PROPERTIES OF COMPLEMENT
7. IMMUNOGLOBULIN & COMPLEMENT
• Not all imunoglobulins are complement
fixators.
• Binding site – Fc portion of Ab ( when binds
with antigen)
• IgM > IgG3 > IgG1 > IgG2.
• IgG 4, Ig A, IgD & IgE – DONOT FIX.
12. PATHWAYS
• Classical pathway ( Specific; active)
• Alternative (Properdin )pathway
• Lectin Pathway
- ( Non specifc; Innate)
Series of reactions known as CASCADE
13.
14. CLASSICAL PATHWAY
The sequence of events
following the activation of C1
resulting in immune response
Activators
1. Ag – Ab complex
2. DNA
3. CRP
4. Trypsin
5. Retroviruses
19. ALTERNATE PATHWAY
The activation of C3 without
participation of C4b2a known as
alternate pathway
Activators
1. Zymosan ( Yeat cell wall)
2. Bacterial endotoxins
3. Cobra venom
4. Nephritic factor (GN pts)
5. Ig A, Ig D
21. LECTIN PATHWAY
A pathway where lectin & mannose
activates the complement
ACTIVATORS
Lectin – Mannose complex to pathogens
(Mannose specific protease – MASP 1 &
MASP 2)
22.
23.
24.
25. 1. Which of the following pathway is
antidody independent?
a. Classical pathway
b. Properdin pathway
c. Lectin pathway
d. Alternate pathway
Ans: b & d
26. 2. Which one of these is called as classical
C3 convertase?
a. C4b2b
b. C4b2a
c. C5a6b
d. C5b6a
Ans: b
27. 3. Which one of these is classical C5
convertase?
a. C4b2a3b
b. C1a2a3a
c. C4a2a3a
d. C56789
Ans: a
28. EFFECTOR FUNCTIONS
• Lysis of cells or bacteria.
• Viral neutralisation
• Opsonisation & Phagocytosis
• Immune clearance – deposition in liver
& spleen
• Amplify inflammatory response,
increase vascular permeability,release of
histamine.
33. Deficiencies of the complement system
GROUP DEFICIENCY SYNDROME
I C1 inhibitor Hereditary
angioneurotic
edema
II Early components
of classical pathway
C1,C2,C4
SLE & other
collagen vascular
diseases
III C3 and C3b
inactivator
Severe recurrent
pyogenic infections
IV C5 to C8 Bacteremia – GN
diplococci,
toxoplasmosis
V C9 -----------