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Protection of germinal centres from complement attack: Decay‐accelerating factor (DAF) is a constitutive protein on follicular dendritic cells. A study in reactive and neoplastic follicles
Author(s) -
Lampert I. A.,
Schofield J. B.,
Amlot P.,
Van Noorden Susan
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
the journal of pathology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.964
H-Index - 184
eISSN - 1096-9896
pISSN - 0022-3417
DOI - 10.1002/path.1711700204
Subject(s) - decay accelerating factor , germinal center , follicular dendritic cells , microbiology and biotechnology , complement system , factor h , immune system , cd59 , biology , antibody , cd46 , follicular phase , antigen , chemistry , immunology , b cell , antigen presenting cell , t cell , genetics
The development of B‐cell memory is linked to the presence of germinal centres. This process is dependent on the presence of antigen, usually in the form of immune complexes with antibody, on the surface of the follicular dendritic cells (FDCs) that form a network in the germinal centre. The presence of immune complexes poses a constant danger of activating complement. Decay accelerating factor (DAF, CD55) and the membrane attack complex (MAC) inhibitor (CD59) are two cell proteins whose sole function is to protect cells from the action of complement, the former affecting the earlier components of the complement cascade, and the latter the terminal ones; both are bound to the cell surface via a glycosylphosphatidylinositol link. DAF but not CD59 could be demonstrated on FDCs. DAF is also present on the FDCs in follicular lymphomas despite the absence of complement (C3) in neoplastic follicles. This indicates that DAF is constitutive to FDCs but does not preclude the possibility that its expression is increased when immune complexes are deposited.