Background Human pregnancy alters profoundly the immune system. The local involvement and mechanisms of activation of the complement system in the cervicovaginal milieu during pregnancy and delivery remain unexplored. Objectives To determine whether normal pregnancy and delivery are associated with local activation of complement or changes in the immunoglobulin profile in the cervix. Study Design This study was designed to assess IgA, IgG, and complement activation in the cervicovaginal area in three groups of patients: i) 49 pregnant women (week 41+3-42+0) not in active labor, ii) 24 women in active labor (38+4-42+2), and iii) a control group of nonpregnant women (n=23) at child-bearing age. We collected mucosal samples from the lateral fornix of the vagina and external cervix during routine visits and delivery. The Western blot technique was used to detect complement C3 and its activation products. For semiquantitative analysis, the bands of the electrophoresed proteins in gels were digitized on a flatbed photo scanner and analyzed. IgA and IgG were analyzed by Western blotting and quantified by ELISA. One-way ANOVA and Tukey's Multiple Comparison tests were used for statistical comparisons. Results A higher abundance but lower activation level of C3 in both the external cervix (P Conclusions Our results reveal an unexpectedly strong activation of the complement system and the presence IgG immunoglobulins in the cervicovaginal area during pregnancy, active labor, and among nonpregnant women. In contrast to the higher amounts of C3 in the cervicovaginal secretions during labor, its activation level was lower. Complement activating IgG was detected in higher concentrations than IgA in the mucosal secretions during pregnancy and labor. Taken together our results imply the presence a locally operating humoral immune system in the cervicovaginal mucosa.

Stroke is an acute insult to the central nervous system (CNS) that triggers a sequence of responses in the acute, subacute as well as later stages, with prominent involvement of astrocytes. Astrocyte activation and reactive gliosis in the acute stage of stroke limit the tissue damage and contribute to the restoration of homeostasis. Astrocytes also control many aspects of neural plasticity that is the basis for functional recovery. Here, we discuss the concept of intermediate filaments (nanofilaments) and the complement system as two handles on the astrocyte responses to injury that both present attractive opportunities for novel treatment strategies modulating astrocyte functions and reactive gliosis.

Malaria remains one of the major health problems in many tropical countries, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. Among the most characteristic features of the malaria pathogens, protozoan parasites of the genus Plasmodium, is their ability to evade the immune defences of the host for extended periods of time. The complement system (C) is an essential part of the innate system in the first line of defense. It consists of over 30 soluble or membrane-bound components. C can be activated through three different (the classical, the lectin and the alternative) pathways, and the activation is tightly regulated. All three pathways converge at the C3 level and activation continues through the terminal pathway. C functions include lysis of microbes, opsonization, attraction and activation of leucocytes and enhancement of the inflammatory response. In the present study the aim was to look into whether Plasmodium falciparum (Pf) interferes with the complement at the level of C3 by accelerating C3b inactivation and thus inhibit the amplification of the C cascade. Considering the characteristics of Pf infection it is obvious that the plasmodia must somehow avoid complement attack. Flow cytometric analysis (FACS), enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA), immunoblotting assays and matrix assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) were used to determine if Pf evade C attack by acquisition of the host C inhibitors, factor H (FH) and C4b binding protein (C4bp), from serum. FH is the major regulator of the alternative-pathway while C4bp is an inhibitor of the classical-pathway. We also studied binding of complement components, especially C3, to Pf cells. In our studies, there appeared to be an elevated binding of FH to Pf parasitized erythrocytes in FACS. In immunoblotting assays, a putative C3-binding merozoite-stage Pf protein was observed. Previously, it has been suggested that Plasmodium spp. merozoites adsorb C3 fragments to their surface to gain entry into erythrocytes via CR1-receptor. No binding of C4bp was detected. Further studies are required to reveal the complement resistance mechanisms of Pf. Elucidation of Pf-C interactions will be of great importance for our understanding of the principles of Plasmodium immunoevasion that affect directly the virulence of the microbe. By identifying factors whereby Pf evades C, it is possible to understand better how the microbe causes disease and, ultimately, how this could be prevented.

Ischemic stroke is a complex disease involving multiple pathophysiological mechanisms. To date, many therapeutic intervention strategies such as anti-inflammatory treatments have been tested, but none of them has been successful. Previous studies have shown that mesencephalic astrocyte-derived neurotrophic factor (MANF) improves stroke recovery and increases the expression of phagocytosis related genes. In this study, the phagocytic and inflammatory effect of monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 (MCP-1), macrophage colony-stimulating factor (M-CSF), complement component 3 (C3), adhesion G protein-coupled receptor E1 (ADGRE1), MER receptor tyrosine kinase (MerTK) and mesencephalic astrocyte-derived neurotrophic factor (MANF) on microglia were studied simultaneously for the first time. The phagocytosis related genes were transiently transfected into a microglial cell line and studied in vitro utilizing phagocytosis assay, fluorescence-activated cell sorting, Western blot and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. MCP-1, M-CSF and C3a were shown to enhance microglial phagocytosis without inducing a pro-inflammatory response. In addition, MerTK induces phagocytosis and the synthesis of pro-inflammatory cytokines. In conclusion, the real therapeutic potential of MCP-1, M-CSF, C3a and MerTK in stroke treatment should be further characterized and tested in vivo.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common endocrinological disorder of fertile-aged women. Several adverse pregnancy outcomes and abnormalities of the placenta have been associated with PCOS. By using quantitative label-free proteomics we investigated whether changes in the plasma proteome of pregnant women with PCOS could elucidate the mechanisms behind the pathologies observed in PCOS pregnancies. A total of 169 proteins with >= 2 unique peptides were detected to be differentially expressed between women with PCOS (n = 7) and matched controls (n = 20) at term of pregnancy, out of which 35 were significant (p-value <0.05). A pathway analysis revealed that networks related to humoral immune responses, inflammatory responses, cardiovascular disease and cellular growth and proliferation were affected by PCOS. Classification of cases and controls was carried out using principal component analysis, orthogonal projections on latent structure-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA), hierarchical clustering, self-organising maps and ROC-curve analysis. The most significantly enriched proteins in PCOS were properdin and insulin-like growth factor II. In the dataset, properdin had the best predictive accuracy for PCOS (AUC=1). Additionally, properdin abundances correlated with AMH levels in pregnant women.