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Serum Complement and the Enzymatic Degradation of Erythrocyte Phospholipid

From the Department of Immunochemistry, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Washington, D. C.

Abstract

Small but significant and reproducible alterations in the phospholipid and titratable acid contents of reaction mixtures containing sensitized sheep erythrocytes and guinea pig serum occurred during and following the process of lysis. In experiments employing erythrocytes sensitized with anti-Forssman antibody, there was a fall in the total serine phosphatide content of the mixtures. In experiments using cells sensitized with hyperimmune antibody there was a fall in the total choline phosphatide content of the mixtures. In so far as studied, the lipid alterations had the characteristics of an enzyme reaction which is dependent for its activation on the presence of both sensitized erythrocytes and guinea pig serum, and which was influenced in terms of its substrate by the nature of the sensitizing antibody. Although the exact nature of the enzymatic process is unclear, the results suggest that the titratable acid changes are related to the action of C'8 or C'9 and are not the result of nonspecific activation of membrane, or of intracellular or serum enzymes following hemolysis of erythrocytes. Whereas it is likely that the lipid changes seen in these experiments are related to the action of serum complement, certain other data in this work indicate that the nature of this relationship is not clear.

Footnotes

¹ Present address: Second (Cornell) Medical Division, Bellevue Hospital, New York City, New York.

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