Background: Inappropriate activation or blockage of the inhibition of complement system could cause tissue damages in autoimmune diseases particularly rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Defect in complement component regulation may cause damages to tissues, on the other hand, or the damaged tissue might affect the unnecessary activation of complement components.   Objective: To investigate the expressi...

A variety of complement-activating substances, including inulin, immunoglobulin aggregates, bacterial endotoxins, and staphylococcal protein A, were found to initiate blood coagulation through a complement-mediated pathway. These substances markedly accelerated blood coagulation in normal rabbit blood. That this clot-promoting activity requires an intact complement system was demonstrated by an...

BACKGROUND Exposing blood to artificial surfaces results in an inflammatory response, including complement activation and cytokine release. The aim of this investigation was to study complement-dependency and independency in artificial surface-induced inflammation in human whole blood from a patient with a genetic deficiency of complement factor 5 (C5). METHODS Whole blood from a C5-deficient...

The sequestration of rat leukocytes and bone marrow cells by the lung vasculature was studied using an isolated perfused rat lung preparation. The passage of latex particles of 7.6 µm in diameter and non-hematopoietic cells through the lung blood vessels was also studied. Leukocytes and bone marrow cells were reversibly sequestered from circulation, whereas, latex particles and non-hematop...