Skip to main content
The Journal of Experimental Medicine logoLink to The Journal of Experimental Medicine
. 1977 Sep 1;146(3):759–765. doi: 10.1084/jem.146.3.759

Biosynthesis of pro-C3, a precursor of the third component of complement

PMCID: PMC2180790  PMID: 561154

Abstract

A precusor of the third component of complement, pro-C3, was detected in studies of cell-free synthesis and intracellularly in homogenates of liver tissue cultures. The molecular weight of pro-C3 was indistinguishable from that of intact native C3 secreted in vitro by liver or peritoneal macrophages, but its structure was different. Pro- C3 is a single polypeptide chain, whereas C3 secreted by cells in culture consists of two polypeptide chains (mol wt 120,000 and 76,000) linked by disulfide bonds.

Full Text

The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (526.5 KB).

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Alper C. A., Johnson A. M., Birtch A. G., Moore F. D. Human C'3: evidence for the liver as the primary site of synthesis. Science. 1969 Jan 17;163(3864):286–288. doi: 10.1126/science.163.3864.286. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Bentley C., Bitter-Suermann D., Hadding U., Brade V. In vitro synthesis of factor B of the alternative pathway of complement activation by mouse peritoneal macrophages. Eur J Immunol. 1976 Jun;6(6):393–398. doi: 10.1002/eji.1830060604. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Bitter-Suermann D., Hadding U., Melchert F., Wellensiek H. J. Independent and consecutive action of the complement components C5, C6 and C7 in immune hemolysis. I. Preparation of EAC1-5 with purified guinea pig C3 and C5. Immunochemistry. 1970 Dec;7(12):955–965. doi: 10.1016/0019-2791(70)90002-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Colten H. R. Ontogeny of the human complement system: in vitro biosynthesis of individual complement components by fetal tissues. J Clin Invest. 1972 Apr;51(4):725–730. doi: 10.1172/JCI106866. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Hall R. E., Colten H. R. Molecular size and subunit structure of the fourth component of guinea pig complement. J Immunol. 1977 May;118(5):1903–1905. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Kemper B., Habener J. F., Mulligan R. C., Potts J. T., Jr, Rich A. Pre-proparathyroid hormone: a direct translation product of parathyroid messenger RNA. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1974 Sep;71(9):3731–3735. doi: 10.1073/pnas.71.9.3731. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Müller-Eberhard H. J. Complement. Annu Rev Biochem. 1975;44:697–724. doi: 10.1146/annurev.bi.44.070175.003405. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Nicholson A., Brade V., Schorlemmer H. U., Burger R., Bitter-Suermann D., Hadding U. Interaction of C3b, B, and D in the alternative pathway of complement activation. J Immunol. 1975 Oct;115(4):1108–1113. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Nilsson U. R., Mandle R. J., Jr, McConnell-Mapes J. A. Human C3 and C5: subunit structure and modifications by trypsin and C42-C423. J Immunol. 1975 Feb;114(2 Pt 2):815–822. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Schreiber R. D., Müller-Eberhard H. J. Fourth component of human complement: description of a three polypeptide chain structure. J Exp Med. 1974 Nov 1;140(5):1324–1335. doi: 10.1084/jem.140.5.1324. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Shapiro A. L., Scharff M. D., Maizel J. V., Jr, Uhr J. W. Polyribosomal synthesis and assembly of the H and L chains of gamma globulin. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1966 Jul;56(1):216–221. doi: 10.1073/pnas.56.1.216. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Stecher V. J., Thorbecke G. J. Sites of synthesis of serum proteins. OI. Serum proteins produced by macrophages in vitro. J Immunol. 1967 Oct;99(4):643–652. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Steiner D. F., Kemmler W., Tager H. S., Peterson J. D. Proteolytic processing in the biosynthesis of insulin and other proteins. Fed Proc. 1974 Oct;33(10):2105–2115. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Steiner D. F., Oyer P. E. The biosynthesis of insulin and a probable precursor of insulin by a human islet cell adenoma. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1967 Feb;57(2):473–480. doi: 10.1073/pnas.57.2.473. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Stenn K. S., Blout E. R. Mechanism of bovine prothrombin activation by an insoluble preparation of bovine factor X a (thrombokinase). Biochemistry. 1972 Nov 21;11(24):4502–4515. doi: 10.1021/bi00774a012. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Szczesna E., Boime I. mRNA-dependent synthesis of authentic precursor to human placental lactogen: conversion to its mature hormone form in ascites cell-free extracts. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1976 Apr;73(4):1179–1183. doi: 10.1073/pnas.73.4.1179. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Weber K., Osborn M. The reliability of molecular weight determinations by dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. J Biol Chem. 1969 Aug 25;244(16):4406–4412. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from The Journal of Experimental Medicine are provided here courtesy of The Rockefeller University Press

RESOURCES