Specific measurement of alternate pathway activation of complement in human glomerulonephritides (GN) : 125 cases
Berthoux, F.C.; Freyria, A.M.
Nephrologie 1(2): 61-66
1980
ISSN/ISBN: 0250-4960 PMID: 7301022 Document Number: 165795
C3 patients. The normal percentage of native C3 conversion ranged 0-29 in controls (P < 0.05). The number of positive samples is 0/30 in lupus GN (0%), 13/29 in acute GN (45%), and 26/66 in membranoproliferative GN (39%) with 7/8 in dense deposits subtype. The presence of alternate pathway activators of C correlated with serum C3 level; their frequency is, respectively, 0, 0.32 and 0.48 if serum C3 is normal, low and very low. Such activity correlated well with alternate pathway C3 activation (low C3 and normal C4); the frequency of positive samples is, respectively, 0, 0.07 and 0.51 in the presence of no C3 activation, classical pathway activation (low C3 and low C4) and alternate pathway activation. The nature of such serum activators could be nephritic factor, bacterial polysaccharides, polymeric IgA, activated properdin, peculiar immune complexes or other factors. Such measurement is an important immunopathological step in the investigation of human GN.