Antwi-Baffour Samuel, Kyeremeh Ransford, Adjei Jonathan Kofi, Aryeh Claudia, Kpentey George
Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, School of Allied Health Sciences, College of Health Sciences, University of Ghana, P. O. Box KB 143, Korle-Bu, Accra, Ghana.
Auto Immun Highlights. 2016 Dec;7(1):6. doi: 10.1007/s13317-016-0078-x. Epub 2016 Mar 3.
The complement system is an enzyme cascade that helps defend against infection. Many complement proteins occur in serum as inactive enzyme precursors or reside on cell surfaces. Complement components have many biologic functions and their activation can eventually damage the plasma membranes of cells and some bacteria. Although a direct link between complement activation and autoimmune diseases has not been found, there is increasing evidence that complement activation significantly contributes to the pathogenesis of a large number of inflammatory diseases that may have autoimmune linkage. The inhibition of complement may therefore be very important in a variety of autoimmune diseases since their activation may be detrimental to the individual involved. However, a complete and long-term inhibition of complement may have some contra side effects such as increased susceptibility to infection. The site of complement activation will, however, determine the type of inhibitor to be used, its route of application and dosage level. Compared with conventional drugs, complement inhibitors may be the best option for treatment of autoimmune diseases. The review takes a critical look at the relative merits of therapies being developed to tackle inappropriate complement activation that are likely to result in sporadic autoimmune diseases or worsen already existing one. It covers the complement system, general aspects of complement inhibition therapy, therapeutic strategies and examples of complement inhibitors. It concludes by highlighting on the possibility that a better inhibitor of complement activation when found will help provide a formidable treatment for autoimmune diseases as well as preventing one.
补体系统是一种酶级联反应，有助于抵御感染。许多补体蛋白以无活性的酶前体形式存在于血清中或存在于细胞表面。补体成分具有多种生物学功能，其激活最终可损伤细胞和某些细菌的质膜。虽然尚未发现补体激活与自身免疫性疾病之间存在直接联系，但越来越多的证据表明，补体激活在大量可能存在自身免疫关联的炎症性疾病的发病机制中起着重要作用。因此，在各种自身免疫性疾病中，抑制补体可能非常重要，因为补体激活可能对相关个体有害。然而，完全和长期抑制补体可能会有一些副作用，如增加感染易感性。然而，补体激活的部位将决定所使用抑制剂的类型、应用途径和剂量水平。与传统药物相比，补体抑制剂可能是治疗自身免疫性疾病的最佳选择。本文综述批判性地审视了为应对不适当的补体激活而开发的治疗方法的相对优点，这些激活可能导致散发性自身免疫性疾病或使已有的疾病恶化。它涵盖了补体系统、补体抑制治疗的一般方面、治疗策略和补体抑制剂的实例。文章最后强调，当找到更好的补体激活抑制剂时，有可能为自身免疫性疾病提供强大的治疗方法并预防此类疾病。
