A Family Affair: Addressing the Challenges of Factor H and the Related Proteins.

ABSTRACT: Inflammation is a common denominator of diseases. The complement system, an intrinsic part of the innate immune system, is a key driver of inflammation in numerous disorders. Recently, a family of proteins has been suggested to be of vital importance in conditions characterized by complement dysregulation: the human Factor H (FH) family. This group of proteins consists of FH, Factor H-like protein 1 and five Factor H-related proteins. The FH family has been linked to infectious, vascular, eye, kidney and autoimmune diseases. In contrast to FH, the functions of the other highly homologous proteins are largely unknown and, hence, their role in the different disease-specific pathogenic mechanisms remains elusive. In this perspective review, we address the major challenges ahead in this emergi

SUBMITTER: Poppelaars F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8044877 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature