Assessment of the activation pathways of the complement in psoriatic patients by use of complement fragment C4d and Bb measurements.

We have measured the complement fragment C4d and Bb levels in the plasma of 51 psoriatic patients and 54 normal controls. The C4d and Bb levels were not significantly elevated in the plasma of the psoriatic patients when compared with those of controls, except in patients with more than 60% skin involvement who exhibited an increase in Bb levels. C4d levels, however, did decrease slightly after successful treatment of psoriasis. Although these results suggest that the C4d and Bb levels partly reflect the complement activation in vivo, they do not seem to be suitable parameters to clarify the mechanism of complement activation in psoriasis.