Myeloperoxidase influences the complement regulatory activity of complement factor H

The interaction between neutrophils and activation of alternative complement pathway plays a critical role in the pathogenesis of ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV). MPO, which can be released from ANCA-stimulated neutrophils, was recently demonstrated to be capable of activating the alternative complement pathway. Here we aimed to investigate the interaction between MPO and factor H (FH), a key regulator of the alternative pathway, and its effect on the functional activities of FH.

Detection of FH and MPO on neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) induced by serum from AAV patients and in kidney biopsies of AAV patients was performed by immunostaining. In vitro binding between MPO and FH was examined by ELISA and surface plasmon resonance. The influence of MPO on the complement regulatory activity of FH was further assessed.

FH deposited and co-localized with MPO in NETs. In kidney biopsies from AAV patients, MPO was closely adjacent to FH in glomerular capillaries. We demonstrated that MPO binds to FH with an apparent nanomolar affinity and identified short consensus repeats 1-4 of FH as the major binding sites. In terms of functional analysis, MPO inhibited the interaction between FH and C3b and the decay-accelerating activity of FH. The fluid phase and surface cofactor activities of FH upon C3b inactivation were inhibited by MPO.

Our findings indicate that MPO binds to FH and influences the complement regulatory activity of FH. MPO-FH interaction may participate in the pathogenesis of AAV by contributing to activation of the alternative complement pathway.