Complement Regulatory Proteins

ISBN-13: 9780125069656 / Angielski / Twarda / 1999 / 382 str.

B. Paul Morgan

Opis

From small beginnings in the early 1970s, the study of complement regulatory proteins has grown in the last decade to the point where it dominates the complement field. This growth has been fueled by the discovery of new regulators, the cloning of old and new regulators, the discovery that many of the regulators are structurally and evolutionarily related to each other and the development of recombinant forms for use in therapy. There are now more proteins known to be involved in controlling the complement system than there are components of the system and the list continues to grow. The time is ripe for a comprehensive review of our current knowledge of these intriguing proteins. This book does just that. The first few chapters discuss the "nuts-and-bolts" of the complement regulators, describing their structures, functional roles and modes of action. The roles of the complement regulators in vivo are then described, focusing on the consequences of deficiency, roles in the reproductive system, interactions with pathogens and exploitation for therapy. The interesting developments in defining the complement regulators expressed in other species are also discussed. The book is written as a monograph, albeit by two people. The text is as readable as possible without compromising on scientific accuracy and completeness. The conversational style very evident in some sections is deliberate Placing all references in a single bibliography at the end of the text further improves readability. The reader will go to the book to discover a specific fact but be persuaded to read more and derive pleasure from the process. The authors' enthusiasm for the subject comes over strongly in the text, and this enthusiasm proves infectious.

• Complement regulators--structure, functional roles and mode of action
• Comprehensive reviews of each of the individual regulators
• Roles of Complement regulators in vivo, in health and disease:
• Consequences of deficiency
• Roles in the reproductive system
• Interactions with pathogens
• Exploitation for therapy
• Complement regulators in other species

Spis treści

The Complement System: A Brief Overview:Introduction.Activation of C.Physiological Roles of C.Involvement of C in Pathology.Why a Book on C Regulators?Regulation in the Complement System:Introduction.History.Control of Activation Pathways.Control in the Membrane Attack Pathway.Control of the Anaphylactic Peptides.Summary.Regulation in the Activation Pathways:Regulation of C1.Regulators Encoded in the RCA Gene Cluster.Other Regulators of the Activation Pathways.Regulation in the Terminal Pathway:Introduction.Fluid-Phase Regulators of the Terminal Pathway.Membrane Regulators of the Terminal Pathway.Recovery from C Membrane Attack.Concluding Remarks.Deficiencies of Complement Regulators:Introduction, Deficiency of C1 Inhibitor (C1inh).Deficiencies of Fluid-Phase C3 Convertase Regulators.Deficiencies of Fluid-Phase Membrane Attack Pathway Regulators.Deficiencies of Membrane Regulators of C.Concluding Remarks.Complement Regulation in the Reproductive System:Introduction.Role of C Inhibitors in the Protection of Sperm.Role of C Regulators in Protection of the Fetus.The Role of MCP in Fertilization.Concluding Remarks.Complement Regulators and Micro-Organisms:Introduction.Complement Regulators as Receptors for Microorgansims.Hijacking of Complement Regulators by Microorganisms.Molecular Mimicry.C5a-Peptidase/C5a-ASE.Conclusions.Complement Regulatory Proteins in Other Species:Introduction.Regulators of the Activation pathways.Regulators of the Terminal Pathway.Manipulation of Membrane C Regulators In Vivo.Complement Regulators in Therapy:Introduction.Therapy with Soluble C Regulators.Antibodies Against C Components as Therapeutics.Complement Regulators in Xenotransplantation.Anti-CRP Antibodies and Therapy.Concluding Remarks.Bibliography.

O autorze

Dr. Harris is in the Complement Biology Group, Department of Medical Biochemistry, University of Wales College of Medicine. Her Ph.D. degree was in Professor Peter Lachmann's unit in Cambridge where, under the supervision of Dr. Richard Harrison, she undertook studies of the biochemistry of C3. She completed her Ph.D. in 1993. She retains a strong interest in the biochemical aspects of the complement system and in the regulators which control complement at the level of C3.