Role of dendritic cell synthesis of complement in the allospecific T cell response

Although extrahepatic synthesis of complement and particularly C3 has been widely studied in most cells and tissues, new information is emerging on dendritic cells (DCs). This research has shown that mouse bone marrow (BM) derived DCs are able to synthesise C3 and this synthesis has a substantial impact on DC activation, affecting the diverse range of DC functions relevant to the allospecific T cell response. Thus, local production of C3 appears to regulate the capacity of DCs to trigger the primary T cell response against donor alloantigen. Understanding of the key mechanisms by which complement activation modulates DC maturation could lead to the development of therapeutic strategies to down regulate DC activation thus reduce allograft rejection.