PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

D T Fearon

Publications and source records attributed to D T Fearon.

At least 109 records · Page 6Linked to original sources
PubMed1985

Human complement receptors for C3b (CR1) and C3d (CR2).

The human C3b receptor (CR1) is a polymorphic glycoprotein comprised of a single polypeptide chain. Of the 4 allotype forms of CR1 that have been described, the 2 most common have Mr's of 250,000 and 260,000, and are regulated by alleles having frequencies in a Caucasian population of 81.5% and 18.5%, respectively. CR1 is present on erythrocytes, neutrophils, eosinophils, monocytes, macrophages, B lymphocytes, some T lymphocytes, mast cells, and glomerular podocytes. CR1 number on erythrocytes is genetically regulated, and ranges from less than 100 sites per cell to greater than 1000 sites per cell, the average in the normal population being 500-600 sites per cell. A model accounting for this wide distribution proposes the existence of 2 codominant alleles determining low and high receptor number respectively; CR1 number is not affected by the structural polymorphism, so that the loci for these two phenotypic characteristics are distinct. The function of CR1 on erythrocytes may be to promote the clearance of immune complexes from the circulation. CR1 number on myelomonocytic cells is regulated by chemotactic factors which can rapidly transfer CR1 sites from a latent, presumably intracellular, site to the plasma membrane of these cells, thereby enhancing their ability to interact with opsonized foreign material. The receptor is involved in the endocytic reactions of these cells, and recent findings have demonstrated that this function can be modulated by T cell-derived factors, fibronectin, and phorbol esters. The role of CR1 on lymphocytes remains to be fully explored, although the receptor may enhance the differentiation of B cells into antibody-secreting cells.

Alleles↗
PubMed1985

Autoantibody to the C3b/C4b receptor and absence of this receptor from erythrocytes of a patient with systemic lupus erythematosus.

A 29-yr-old woman with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) was found to have no detectable C3b/C4b receptors (CR1) on her erythrocytes (E) when they were assayed by the binding of rabbit polyclonal and murine monoclonal (Yz-1) anti-CR1. Analysis by two-color fluorescent flow cytometry of CR1 expression on the patient's B lymphocytes that had been stained indirectly with monoclonal anti-B1 and rabbit F(ab')2 anti-CR1 also revealed a marked deficiency of CR1. Total cellular CR1 of neutrophils, assessed by a sandwich radioimmunoassay, was about half that of neutrophils from normal individuals. Because her E had expressed 173 sites/cell 2 yr before, the CR1 deficiency was considered to be acquired and a possible mechanism was sought. Autoantibody to CR1 was measured by a radioimmunoassay in which serum or its fractions were incubated in microtiter wells that had been coated with purified CR1, and binding of immunoglobulin to the wells was quantitated with 125I-labeled goat IgG antihuman F(ab')2. The CR1-specific binding of immunoglobulin from the patient's serum was 19.1 ng/well of the detecting antibody when her E had eight CR1 sites per cell; that of 28 healthy donors was 1.3 +/- 0.5 ng/well (mean +/- SEM), and that of 34 additional patients with SLE was 0.5 +/- 0.3 ng/well. The activity was present also in purified IgG and its F(ab')2 fragment, indicating that the binding of serum immunoglobulin to CR1 was not mediated by C3 fragments. The specificity of the patient's IgG for CR1 was confirmed when pretreatment of the CR1-coated wells with affinity-purified rabbit F(ab')2 anti-CR1 was shown to inhibit by 68% the binding of the IgG. The autoantibody also interacted with CR1 in cell membranes, as assessed by its capacity to inhibit the binding of indirectly fluoresceinated Yz-1 to neutrophils, and, when combined with goat IgG antihuman F(ab')2, to diminish the binding of dimeric C3b to normal E. During the period of the marked deficiency of CR1 the patient experienced an exacerbation of disease activity which was treated with prednisone. Clinical improvement was accompanied by a decrease in the serum concentration of anti-CR1 to levels present 2 yr earlier, and an increase of CR1 to 170 sites/E. The temporal association between high titers of an autoantibody to CR1, absence of CR1 from E, and heightened activity of SLE suggest that the former may have had a role in the other manifestations of the patient's disease.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Normal function of CR1 on affected erythrocytes of patients with paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria.

Paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH) is an acquired hemolytic anemia in which affected erythrocytes (E) are abnormally sensitive to lysis by autologous complement. Affected E from patients with PNH (PNH-E) are deficient in an E membrane regulatory protein of complement, decay-accelerating factor (DAF). Because a functional defect in a second membrane regulatory protein of complement, CR1 (C3b receptor), has also been hypothesized, severely affected PNH-E (type III PNH-E) were tested for abnormalities in CR1 by four methods. E from two patients with 100% type III PNH-E had 3201 and 6783 sites per cell for binding of 125I-labeled rabbit polyclonal F(ab')2 anti-CR1. These values fall within the normal range of CR1 antigenic sites per cell (1267 to 7915, mean = 5,014 +/- 155 SEM) established by assaying the E from 113 healthy donors. The Ka of CR1 on type III PNH-E for 125I-labeled C3b dimer was 2.06 X 10(7) M-1, and the Ka values for the binding of the same ligand to the E from two healthy individuals were 2.45 X 10(7) M-1 and 1.58 X 10(7) M-1. In an assay designed to measure the capacity of human E (Eh) to accelerate the decay of the classical C3 convertase deposited on 1 X 10(7) bystander sheep E (EAC1gp,4bh,2agp), the half-life (t 1/2) of this convertase was diminished from 18.1 min (range 15.2 to 22.9) to 8.1 min (range 7.4 to 8.5) by the addition of 1 X 10(7) normal Eh, to 6.2 min by 100% type III PNH-E, and to 7.5 min by Eh pretreated with an IgG fraction of human antiserum directed against the D antigen of the Rh system. In contrast, Eh (t 1/2 = 7.4) pretreated with a saturating dose of F(ab')2 anti-CR1, and CR1-deficient Eh (less than 10 CR1 molecules/E) from a patient with systemic lupus erythematosus, showed a loss of convertase decay-accelerating capacity to t 1/2 = 11.6 and t 1/2 = 12.4, respectively. Type III PNH-E pretreated with anti-CR1 demonstrated a total loss of their decay-accelerating capacity (t 1/2 = 19.9). In an assay of I cofactor activity, soluble C3b was rapidly converted to iC3b by purified I plus Eh or type III PNH-E, whereas CR1-deficient Eh exhibited less than 5% the I cofactor activity of normal Eh.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Antigen-Antibody Complex↗
PubMed1985

p65: A C3b-binding protein on murine cells that shares antigenic determinants with the human C3b receptor (CR1) and is distinct from murine C3b receptor.

Affinity-purified rabbit antibody to the human C3b receptor (CR1) cross-reacted with an antigen that was expressed on murine splenocytes, lymph node cells, thymocytes, peritoneal macrophages, erythrocytes, and L929 cells, as assessed by flow cytofluorographic analysis of indirectly stained cells. The cell surface antigen recognized by antihuman CR1 had a Mr of 60,000 to 65,000 on each cell type, and the cross-reactive epitope(s) was sensitive to reduction with dithiothreitol but not to oxidation with NaIO4. Analysis by affinity chromatography of murine splenic B lymphocytes identified two cell surface proteins capable of binding to guinea pig C3b (C3bgp). The larger polypeptide had a Mr of 210,000, was not present in L929 cells, and may represent the murine CR1. The smaller polypeptide of 65,000 Mr was also present on L929 cells and was shown to constitute the cross-reactive antigen. Adsorption of detergent lysates of L929 cells with C3bgp-Sepharose depleted by 44% the antigen recognized by anti-human CR1; the C3bgp-binding protein and the cross-reactive antigen exhibited similar patterns on two-dimensional gel electrophoresis; and the isolated C3b-binding protein could be immunoprecipitated with anti-human CR1. Thus, the murine cell surface protein, termed p65, that is antigenically cross-reactive with human CR1 shares a capacity for binding to C3b in its detergent-solubilized form but is distinct from murine CR1 in its lower Mr, wider cellular distribution, and inability to mediate the adherence of C3b-coated particles in its native, membrane-associated form.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

PMA induces the ligand-independent internalization of CR1 on human neutrophils.

Phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) has been reported to confer on the C3b receptor (CR1) of neutrophils a capacity for phagocytosis of particles bearing C3b without the involvement of other membrane receptors. In the present study, we employed a monoclonal antibody, YZ-1, that is specific for CR1 to assess the effect of PMA on plasma membrane expression of CR1, total cellular CR1, and internalization of CR1 by neutrophils. PMA had a biphasic effect on the membrane expression of CR1 by purified neutrophils, with 4 ng/ml inducing a 60% increment in receptor expression, and higher concentrations causing up to a 70% decrement. PMA-dependent increases in CR1 expression were not accompanied by corresponding changes in total cellular CR1 and were preempted by treatment of cells with formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine (FMLP). PMA-induced decreases in CR1 expression by neutrophils, as measured by binding of indirectly fluoresceinated or radiolabeled YZ-1, or of 125I-labeled dimeric C3b, were maximal with 20 to 30 ng/ml PMA, and occurred within 30 min of incubation at 37 degrees C. The PMA-dependent down-regulation of CR1 by neutrophils was not associated with a comparable decrease in total cellular CR1, and this response was observed to occur also with monocytes but not with peripheral blood lymphocytes. By tagging neutrophil CR1 with 125I-YZ-1 Fab and monitoring accessibility to Protease, intracellular CR1 (inaccessible) was discriminated from receptor on plasma membrane (accessible). Internalization of CR1 occurred within 5 min after addition of PMA to neutrophils, was dose dependent, and involved up to two-thirds of the tagged receptors. Therefore, PMA caused internalization of CR1 by neutrophils in the absence of ligand, indicating that this response was independent of a transmembrane signal generated by a C3b-CR1 interaction.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Neutrophils express a receptor for iC3b, C3dg, and C3d that is distinct from CR1, CR2, and CR3.

In the present study we examined human neutrophils for the expression of a receptor capable of binding C3dg and defined the relationship of this receptor to those that have been previously described, namely CR1, CR2, and CR3. C3dg was isolated from serum depleted of plasminogen, supplemented with 20 mM Mg++, and incubated at 37 degrees C for 6 to 8 days. The purified protein was homogeneous when analyzed by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and exhibited an apparent m.w. of 41,000. C3dg was polymerized by treatment with dimethyl suberimidate, and the dimer was isolated by gel filtration. Binding of both monomeric and dimeric 125I-labeled C3dg to neutrophils was saturable, and the latter ligand bound to an average of 12,400 sites/cell among nine normal individuals. At 4 degrees C, bound monomeric C3dg dissociated from neutrophils with an average t1/2 of 30 min, whereas dimeric C3dg dissociated with a t1/2 in excess of 120 min. Specific binding of multimeric C3dg was cation independent and was competitively inhibited by molar concentrations of iC3b and C3d that were equivalent to the inhibitory concentrations of unlabeled C3dg; C3b was less able to compete with C3dg for binding to these sites. The capacity of this neutrophil receptor to bind iC3b, C3dg, and C3d suggested its possible identity as CR2 or CR3. However, no specific binding to neutrophils of 125I-labeled HB-5 monoclonal anti-CR2 was detected. Furthermore, uptake of 125I-labeled C3dg was not inhibited by saturating concentrations of rabbit anti-CR1, anti-Mac-1, or OKM10. Thus, a receptor resides on neutrophils that binds the C3d region of iC3b and C3dg and is distinct from CR1, CR2, and CR3.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Characterization of a soluble form of the C3b/C4b receptor (CR1) in human plasma.

A radioimmunoassay with the use of soluble 125I-Fab monoclonal anti-CR1 and rabbit IgG anti-CR1 bound to Staphylococcus aureus particles was employed to detect and quantitate CR1 antigen in human plasma. Among 16 normal individuals the concentration of soluble CR1 in plasma ranged from 13 to 81 ng/ml, and a similar range of concentration was found in plasma from 15 patients having systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The amount of plasma CR1 in normal donors, but not in SLE patients, significantly correlated with the number of CR1 sites on erythrocytes (r = 0.90, p less than 0.001), and was 7.1% of the amount of receptor that was present on erythrocytes in blood. The concentration of soluble CR1 was not diminished by ultracentrifugation or ultrafiltration of plasma, was not affected by various modes of anti-coagulation or even by clotting of blood, and did not change during incubation of blood at 4 degrees C for up to 4 hr. On sucrose density gradient ultracentrifugation of plasma the CR1 was distributed as a broad peak that overlapped the plasma protein profile. The Mr of plasma CR1 was identical to that of erythrocyte CR1 when assessed by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate and immunoblotting. In addition, the plasma form of CR1 exhibited the same structural phenotype as did receptor from erythrocytes of the same individual. CR1 antigen purified from plasma was as active as CR1 from erythrocytes in promoting the cleavage by factor I of C3b to iC3b, C3c, and C3dg. Therefore, a functionally and structurally intact form of soluble CR1 resides in plasma.

Animals↗
PubMed1984

Biocompatibility of dialysis membranes: effects of chronic complement activation.

The ability of three dialysis membranes (cuprophane, cellulose acetate, and polymethylmethacrylate) to activate complement was studied prospectively in ten chronic dialysis patients using new and reused membranes. Patients were dialyzed for 1 month with each type of membrane. New cuprophane membranes caused the most intense activation, while polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) surfaces caused the least degree of complement activation. Reuse decreases the capacity of the cuprophane membrane to activate complement but does not significantly alter the capacity of cellulose acetate membranes. The extent of complement activation paralleled the ability of these membranes to induce neutropenia. Recurrent dialysis with new cuprophane and cellulose acetate membranes leads to a decrease in pre-dialysis and "rebound leukocytosis" neutrophil count, as well as a more intense activation of complement and an enhanced endogenous clearance of products of complement activation. The clinical sequelae of recurrent complement activation are discussed.

Biocompatible Materials↗
PubMed1984

Epstein-Barr virus receptor of human B lymphocytes is the C3d receptor CR2.

Identity of the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) receptor with the complement receptor type 2 (CR2) was established in three sets of experiments using the monoclonal antibodies, HB-5 and anti-B2, which recognize a Mr 145,000 B-lymphocyte membrane protein that is CR2. First, the rank order for binding of fluoresceinated EBV to four lymphoblastoid cell lines (SB, JY, Raji, and Molt-4) was identical to the rank order for binding of HB-5 and anti-B2 by analytical flow cytometry. Second, pretreatment of cells with HB-5 followed by treatment with goat F(ab')2 fragments to mouse IgG blocked binding of fluoresceinated EBV on SB, a B-lymphoblastoid cell line. Virus attachment was not inhibited by HB-5 alone, second antibody alone, rabbit anti-C3b receptor, or UPC10 (an irrelevant monoclonal antibody). Third, transfer of CR2 from SB to protein A-bearing Staphylococcus aureus particles, to which HB-5 had been absorbed, conferred on them the specific ability to bind 125I-labeled EBV. We conclude that CR2 is the EBV receptor of human B lymphocytes.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗
PubMed1984

Identification of a 145,000 Mr membrane protein as the C3d receptor (CR2) of human B lymphocytes.

The C3d receptor (CR2) of human B lymphocytes mediates the binding to these cells of immune complexes that have activated the complement system and bear the fragments of C3, iC3b, C3d,g, and C3d. A 145,000 Mr membrane protein previously described as being recognized by the monoclonal antibody HB-5 and shown to be expressed only by B lymphocytes and B lymphoblastoid cell lines, such as Raji, was assessed for its possible identity as CR2. Treatment of Raji cells with HB-5 and goat F(ab')2 anti-mouse IgG (GaM) diminished the capacity of these cells to form rosettes with sheep erythrocyte (E) intermediates bearing 130,000 molecules of iC3b or C3d, whereas treatment with the monoclonal antibody alone had no effect. The capacity of peripheral blood B lymphocytes to bind EC3d was similarly inhibited by the combination of HB-5 and GaM. The possibility that HB-5 may interact with a site on CR2 that is distinct from the ligand binding site permitted the direct analysis of the capacity of the HB-5 antigen to bind to the C3 fragments. Protein A-containing Staphylococcus aureus particles to which HB-5 had been bound were incubated with detergent lysates of Raji cells and B lymphocytes under conditions that had been shown to be associated only with the binding of the 145,000 Mr antigen. These particles bearing HB-5 and antigen derived from either cell type were shown to adhere specifically to EiC3b and EC3d, demonstrating that transfer of the HB-5 antigen from CR2-bearing cells to S. aureus particles led to the acquisition of CR2 function by the particles. The additional findings that the relatively weak capacity of Raji cells to form rosettes with EC3b was inhibited by HB-5 and that the S. aureus particles bearing immunoadsorbed HB-5 antigen bound to EC3b indicated that the C3b-binding function of the CR1-negative Raji cell resides in CR2, rather than in other membrane proteins.

B-Lymphocytes↗
PubMed1984

Increased expression of the C3b receptor by neutrophils and complement activation during haemodialysis.

Activation of complement and the relative number of C3b receptors expressed by neutrophils was assessed in patients undergoing haemodialysis with new and reused cellulosic membranes, and with polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) membranes. Activation of complement was assessed by radioimmunoassay of plasma C3adesArg, and neutrophil C3b receptors were measured by fluorescent flow cytometry of cells indirectly stained with F(ab')2 anti-C3b receptor. During first use of cellulosic dialysis membranes by four patients, the mean expression of C3b receptors by neutrophils in blood taken from the afferent line of the extra-corporeal system after 10, 20, 60 and 120 min of dialysis increased to 127, 189, 255 and 296%, respectively. The mean plasma C3adesArg concentrations in the corresponding samples of blood were 225, 320, 236 and 160% of the pre-dialysis levels. During third and fifth use of the same membranes by these patients, the mean C3b receptor expression by neutrophils did not exceed 150% of the predialysis determination, and correspondingly minimal increases in plasma C3adesArg were observed. Analysis of blood taken simultaneously from the afferent and efferent lines of the first use cellulosic dialysis system indicated that the increase in C3b receptor expression by neutrophils and generation of C3adesArg occurred when blood came in contact with the dialysis membrane. Haemodialysis of four additional patients with the non-complement activating PMMA membrane caused only modest or no increases in neutrophil C3b receptors. Thus, complement activation in vivo is associated with up-regulation of neutrophilic C3b receptors, indicating that this cellular response previously described only in model, in vitro systems, is a physiological mechanism by which this cell can augment its capacity for responding to C3b opsonized material.

Biocompatible Materials↗
PubMed1984

Altered surface distribution of both C3b receptors and Fc receptors on neutrophils induced by anti-C3b receptor or aggregated IgG.

Human neutrophils to which monospecific Fab' or F(ab')2 anti-C3b receptor had been bound at 0 degrees C were incubated for timed intervals at temperatures ranging from 0 degrees C to 37 degrees C, after which the cells were labeled with TRITC -conjugated second antibody. Neutrophils bearing Fab' anti-C3b receptor and incubated for up to 30 min at 37 degrees C, and cells bearing F(ab')2 anti-C3b receptor and incubated at 0 degrees C, exhibited diffusely distributed punctate clusters of receptors. Neutrophils bearing the bivalent anti-receptor and incubated at 30 degrees C or 37 degrees C for 5 min had redistributed C3b receptors into caps and patches that were associated with subplasmalemmal accumulations of myosin. The redistribution of cross-linked C3b receptors was inhibited by pretreatment of the neutrophils with either cytochalasin D or chlorpromazine. On approximately one-half of the cells demonstrating capped C3b receptors there was a corresponding redistribution of Fc receptors, as demonstrated by subsequent binding of FITC-aggregated IgG (FITC agg-IgG). In contrast, capping of C3b receptors did not alter the diffuse distribution of HLA-A on these cells. Cross-linking of Fc receptors on neutrophils by FITC agg-IgG also induced temperature-dependent capping of these receptors that was inhibited by cytochalasin D and chlorpromazine. In approximately one-half of the cells demonstrating capped Fc receptors, subsequent labeling of C3b receptors revealed a similar redistribution of these receptors. Thus, the neutrophil responds to cross-linking of either C3b receptors or Fc receptors by a cytoskeletal-dependent rearrangement of both receptors that causes their overlapping topographic distribution, demonstrating a form of cooperative interaction between these two types of receptors that are involved in the phagocytic reactions of these cells.

Animals↗
PubMed1984

Structure and function of the human C3b receptor.

The human C3b receptor (C3bR) is a glycoprotein that exists in two allotypic forms having Mr values of approximately 250,000 (F) and 260,000 (S). The number of receptors present on erythrocytes varies by eightfold among normal individuals and is genetically regulated by two codominant alleles that are distinct from the alleles determining the structural polymorphism. C5a and C5ades Arg induce rapid increases in the number of receptors expressed by neutrophils in vitro, and probably account for the increased receptor expression on neutrophils in patients undergoing hemodialysis. Cytoskeletal association of the C3bR on monocytes and neutrophils is suggested by experiments demonstrating receptor-mediated phagocytosis and adsorptive endocytosis through coated pits, and by the reciprocal coredistribution of cross-linked C3b and Fc receptors and the detergent insolubility of cross-linked C3bR. The factor H-like cofactor activity of the C3bR promotes the cleavage of bound C3b to iC3b, C3c, and C3d,g, which may enhance the clearance of circulating immune complexes and the generation of ligands for CR2 and CR3. The inherited partial deficiency of the erythrocyte C3bR in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus and the absence of glomerular C3bR in these patients with proliferative glomerulonephritis may contribute to systemic and organ-specific abnormalities in the clearance of immune complexes in this disease.

Complement C4↗
PubMed1984

Inhibition of the function of activated properdin by squid chondroitin sulfate E glycosaminoglycan and murine bone marrow-derived mast cell chondroitin sulfate E proteoglycan.

We compared the relative capacities of two over-sulfated glycosaminoglycans, heparin and chondroitin sulfate E, to alter the function of native properdin (nP) and activated properdin (aP) in the formation and stabilization of the amplification C3 convertase (C3b,Bb). Heparin was more active on a weight basis than chondroitin sulfate E in inhibiting the formation of C3b,Bb without or with nP, but had no influence on the decay of a pre-formed convertase, either unstabilized or stabilized with nP or aP. In contrast, chondroitin sulfate E was over 10-fold more active than heparin in preventing the formation of C3b,Bb in the presence of aP, and gave dose-related acceleration of decay of pre-formed C3b,Bb,aP but not of unstabilized or nP-stabilized pre-formed convertase. The inhibitory effect of both glycosaminoglycans on the formation of C3b,Bb in the presence of nP or aP was less when the number of C3b sites per target cell was increased. The preferential action of chondroitin sulfate E on the function of aP during the formation and decay of C3b,Bb,aP as compared to C3b,Bb,nP implies functional differences in the two forms of P even when they have been incorporated into C3b,Bb. The equal potency, when adjusted for uronic acid content, of chondroitin sulfate E proteoglycan isolated from the T cell-dependent, bone marrow-derived murine mast cell and of chondroitin sulfate E glycosaminoglycan from squid reveals that the linkage of the glycosaminoglycan to a peptide core does not diminish its regulatory action on the alternative complement pathway.

Animals↗
PubMed1983

The human C3b receptor.

The C3b receptor of human erythrocytes, neutrophils, monocytes, all mature B cells, a subpopulation of T cells, and glomerular podocytes is a single chain glycoprotein that exists in two allotypic forms having Mr's of approximately 250,000 (F) and 260,000 (S). The number of receptors present on erythrocytes varies by eight-fold among different individuals and is genetically regulated by two codominant alleles that are distinct from the alleles determining the structural polymorphism. The number of receptors expressed by neutrophils is subject to rapid increases from 5000 per cell to 40,000 per cell by exposure to nanomolar concentrations of C5adesArg, in vitro, and a similar mechanism is probably the basis for observing increased receptor expression on neutrophils in patients undergoing hemodialysis. Cytoskeletal association of the C3b receptor on monocytes and neutrophils is suggested by experiments demonstrating receptor-mediated phagocytosis, adsorptive endocytosis through coated pits, and restricted lateral diffusion, and by the reciprocal co-redistribution of cross-linked C3b and Fc receptors, and the detergent-insolubility of cross-linked C3b receptors. The factor H-like cofactor activity of the C3b receptor promotes the cleavage of bound C3b to iC3b, C3c and C3d, g, reactions that may enhance the clearance of circulating immune complexes and the generation of ligands for CR2 and CR3. The inherited partial deficiency of erythrocyte C3b receptors in patients with SLE, and the absence of glomerular C3b receptors in these patients with proliferative glomerulonephritis may contribute to systemic and organ-specific abnormalities in the clearance of immune complexes that contribute to the pathogenesis of this disease.

Endocytosis↗