C5a initiates the inflammatory cascade in immune complex peritonitis

Jeanne Godau, Tanja Heller, Heiko Hawlisch, Matthew Trappe, Elaine Howells, Jennifer Best, Jörg Zwirner, J. Sjef Verbeek, P. Mark Hogarth, Craig Gerard, Nico Van Rooijen, Andreas Klos, J. Engelbert Gessner, Jörg Köhl*

*Corresponding author for this work
91 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Immune complex (IC)-induced inflammation is integral to the pathogenesis of several autoimmune diseases. ICs activate the complement system and interact with IgG FcγR. In this study, we demonstrate that activation of the complement system, specifically generation of C5a, initiates the neutrophilic inflammation in IC peritonitis. We show that ablation of C5a receptor signaling abrogates neutrophil recruitment in wild-type mice and prevents the enhancement of neutrophil migration seen in FcγRIIB-/- mice, suggesting that C5aR signaling is the crucial initial event upstream of FcγR signaling. We also provide evidence that C5a initiates the inflammatory cascade both directly, through C5aR-mediated effector functions on infiltrating and resident peritoneal cells, and indirectly, through shifting the balance between activating and inhibitory FcγRs on resident cells toward an inflammatory phenotype. We conclude that complement activation and C5a generation are prerequisites for IC-induced inflammation through activating FcγR, which amplifies complement-induced inflammation in autoimmunity.

Original languageEnglish
JournalJournal of Immunology
Volume173
Issue number5
Pages (from-to)3437-3445
Number of pages9
ISSN0022-1767
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 01.09.2004

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