The Lyme disease spirochete, Borrelia burgdorferi, inhabits the gut lumen of the tick vector. At this location the spirochete is exposed to host blood when a tick feeds. We report here on studies that were done with normal and complement-deficient (C3-knockout) mice to determine if the host complement system killed spirochetes within the vector. We found that spirochete numbers within feeding n...

The complement system represents a cascade of serum proteins, which provide a major effector function in innate immunity. Recent studies have revealed that complement links innate and adaptive immunity via complement receptors CD21/CD35 in that it enhances the B cell memory response to noninfectious protein antigens introduced i.v. To examine the importance of complement for immune responses to...

In this issue of Blood, Noris et al describe a functional complement assay that can be used to diagnose atypical hemolytic-uremic syndrome (aHUS). This assay might also be useful in identifying aHUS patients in remission and in detecting asymptomatic carriers of complement gene mutations. Besides being used for diagnostic purposes, this assay potentially can be used to monitor anticomplement th...

Sera from 452 patients and blood donors were tested for antibodies to Tryp-anosoma cruzi. The complement fixation test and a counterelectrophoresis test were used. The results showed that both tests agreed in 92% of the sera. However, the counterelectrophoresis test was not as sensitive as the complement fixation test.

Murine infection models are widely used to study systemic candidiasis caused by C. albicans . Whole-blood can help elucidate host-pathogens interactions and have been for several Candida species in human blood. We adapted the whole-blood model murine Unlike blood, blood was unable reduce fungal burden more substantial filamentation of observed. This coincided with less association leukocytes, e...

Complement receptor-type 1 (CR1, CD35) is the immune-adherence receptor, a complement regulator, and an erythroid receptor for Plasmodium falciparum during merozoite invasion and subsequent rosette formation involving parasitized and non-infected erythrocytes. The non-uniform geographical distribution of Knops blood group CR1 alleles Sl1/2 and McC(a/b) may result from selective pressures exerte...

BACKGROUND Lutzomyia longipalpis is the vector of Leishmania infantum in the New World, and its saliva inhibits classical and alternative human complement system pathways. This inhibition is important in protecting the insect´s midgut from damage by the complement. L. longipalpis is a promiscuous blood feeder and must be protected against its host's complement. The objective of this study was t...

The complement system is a crucial component of the innate immune response against invading bacterial pathogens. The human pathogen Neisseria meningitidis (Nm) is known to possess several mechanisms to evade the complement system, including binding to complement inhibitors. In this study, we describe an additional mechanism used by Nm to evade the complement system and survive in human blood. U...

Surgical trauma results in the activation of inflammatory cascade systems in the body. Excessive systemic inflammation can lead to organ dysfunction in one or several organs. The thesis aims to describe the body's inflammatory response during major surgery and the extent to which the answer depends on different methods of blood salvage, anesthesia and surgical technique. Method: Twenty-four pat...

Introduction: In this study, we examined the role of immunological factors on sudden sensory neural hearing loss (SSNHL).   Materials and Methods: This prospective case-controlled study was performed in patients with SSNHL who referred to the ear, nose, and throat (ENT) ward. Fifty-six patients with SSNHLoccurring within a 72-hr period were selected as the case group and 56 participants who ha...