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Dai L, Chen Y, Wu J, He Z, Zhang Y, Zhang W, Xie Y, Zeng H, Zhong X. A novel complement C3 inhibitor CP40-KK protects against experimental pulmonary arterial hypertension via an inflammasome NLRP3 associated pathway. J Transl Med 2024; 22:164. [PMID: 38365806 PMCID: PMC10870435 DOI: 10.1186/s12967-023-04741-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2023] [Accepted: 11/20/2023] [Indexed: 02/18/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a severe cardiopulmonary disease characterized by complement dependent and proinflammatory activation of macrophages. However, effective treatment for complement activation in PAH is lacking. We aimed to explore the effect and mechanism of CP40-KK (a newly identified analog of selective complement C3 inhibitor CP40) in the PAH model. METHODS We used western blotting, immunohistochemistry, and immunofluorescence staining of lung tissues from the monocrotaline (MCT)-induced rat PAH model to study macrophage infiltration, NLPR3 inflammasome activation, and proinflammatory cytokines (IL-1β and IL-18) release. Surface plasmon resonance (SPR), ELISA, and CH50 assays were used to test the affinity between CP40-KK and rat/human complement C3. CP40-KK group rats only received CP40-KK (2 mg/kg) by subcutaneous injection at day 15 to day 28 continuously. RESULTS C3a was significantly upregulated in the plasma of MCT-treated rats. SPR, ELISA, and CH50 assays revealed that CP40-KK displayed similar affinity binding to human and rat complement C3. Pharmacological inhibition of complement C3 cleavage (CP40-KK) could ameliorate MCT-induced NLRP3 inflammasome activity, pulmonary vascular remodeling, and right ventricular hypertrophy. Mechanistically, increased proliferation of pulmonary arterial smooth muscle cells is closely associated with macrophage infiltration, NLPR3 inflammasome activation, and proinflammatory cytokines (IL-1β and IL-18) release. Besides, C3a enhanced IL-1β activity in macrophages and promoted pulmonary arterial smooth muscle cell proliferation in vitro. CONCLUSION Our findings suggest that CP40-KK treatment was protective in the MCT-induced rat PAH model, which might serve as a therapeutic option for PAH.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lei Dai
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, China
- Hubei Provincial Engineering Research Center of Vascular Interventional Therapy, Wuhan, 430030, Hubei, China
| | - Yu Chen
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, China
- Hubei Provincial Engineering Research Center of Vascular Interventional Therapy, Wuhan, 430030, Hubei, China
| | - Jinhua Wu
- Department of Gastroenterology, The People's Hospital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Nanning, 530000, Guangxi, China
| | - Zhen He
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, China
- Hubei Provincial Engineering Research Center of Vascular Interventional Therapy, Wuhan, 430030, Hubei, China
| | - Yueqi Zhang
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, China
- Hubei Provincial Engineering Research Center of Vascular Interventional Therapy, Wuhan, 430030, Hubei, China
| | - Wenjun Zhang
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, China
- Hubei Provincial Engineering Research Center of Vascular Interventional Therapy, Wuhan, 430030, Hubei, China
| | - Yang Xie
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, China
- Hubei Provincial Engineering Research Center of Vascular Interventional Therapy, Wuhan, 430030, Hubei, China
| | - Hesong Zeng
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, China.
- Hubei Provincial Engineering Research Center of Vascular Interventional Therapy, Wuhan, 430030, Hubei, China.
| | - Xiaodan Zhong
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, China.
- Hubei Provincial Engineering Research Center of Vascular Interventional Therapy, Wuhan, 430030, Hubei, China.
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