Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cells Mitigate the Effects of Complement Attack by Endocytosis of C5b-9.

ABSTRACT: Retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cell death is a hallmark of age-related macular degeneration. The alternative pathway of complement activation is strongly implicated in RPE cell dysfunction and loss in age-related macular degeneration; therefore, it is critical that RPE cells use molecular strategies to mitigate the potentially harmful effects of complement attack. We show that the terminal complement complex C5b-9 assembles rapidly on the basal surface of cultured primary porcine RPE cells but disappears over 48 h without any discernable adverse effects on the cells. However, in the presence of the dynamin inhibitor dynasore, C5b-9 was almost completely retained at the cell surface, suggesting that, under normal circumstances, it is eliminated via the endocytic pathway. In support of thi

SUBMITTER: Georgiannakis A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4574521 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature