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Published on: July 11, 2015
Isolation and characterization of the eighth component of the bovine complement system
M Menger1, R D Sowery, W P Aston
1Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada.
American Journal of Veterinary Research
|January 6, 2000
Summary
Researchers isolated and characterized bovine complement component 8 (C8) from cattle plasma. The purified C8 protein showed structural similarities to C8 from other species, aiding in complement-mediated lysis studies.
Area of Science:
- Immunology
- Biochemistry
Background:
- The complement system is crucial for innate immunity.
- Component 8 (C8) is essential for the formation of the membrane attack complex.
- Characterization of bovine C8 is important for understanding cattle immune responses.
Purpose of the Study:
- To isolate and characterize the eighth component of the complement system (C8) in cattle.
- To determine the structure and functional properties of bovine C8.
Main Methods:
- Plasma fractionation using sequential precipitation and chromatography.
- Hemolytic assays for identification and functional characterization.
- Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis for molecular weight and subunit analysis.
Main Results:
- Bovine C8 is a disulfide-bonded alpha-gamma heterodimer associated with a beta chain.
- Apparent molecular weights of alpha, beta, and gamma chains were 66, 61, and 23 kDa, respectively.
- Species incompatibility observed between bovine and human C8/C9 in the classical complement pathway.
Conclusions:
- A straightforward 4-step procedure yielded purified bovine C8.
- Bovine C8 structure is comparable to C8 from other species.
- Purified bovine C8 can be used in hemolytic assays to study inflammatory diseases and microbial killing.
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