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Ruiz-Molina N, Parsons J, Müller M, Hoernstein SNW, Bohlender LL, Pumple S, Zipfel PF, Häffner K, Reski R, Decker EL. A synthetic protein as efficient multitarget regulator against complement over-activation. Commun Biol 2022; 5:152. [PMID: 35194132 PMCID: PMC8863895 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-022-03094-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2021] [Accepted: 02/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The complement system constitutes the innate defense against pathogens. Its dysregulation leads to diseases and is a critical determinant in many viral infections, e.g., COVID-19. Factor H (FH) is the main regulator of the alternative pathway of complement activation and could be a therapy to restore homeostasis. However, recombinant FH is not available. Engineered FH versions may be alternative therapeutics. Here, we designed a synthetic protein, MFHR13, as a multitarget complement regulator. It combines the dimerization and C5-regulatory domains of human FH-related protein 1 (FHR1) with the C3-regulatory and cell surface recognition domains of human FH, including SCR 13. In summary, the fusion protein MFHR13 comprises SCRs FHR11-2:FH1-4:FH13:FH19-20. It protects sheep erythrocytes from complement attack exhibiting 26 and 4-fold the regulatory activity of eculizumab and human FH, respectively. Furthermore, we demonstrate that MFHR13 and FHR1 bind to all proteins forming the membrane attack complex, which contributes to the mechanistic understanding of FHR1. We consider MFHR13 a promising candidate as therapeutic for complement-associated diseases. Ruiz-Molina et al. design a synthetic protein, MFHR13, as a multi-target complement regulator. They demonstrate that it protects sheep erythrocytes from complement attack exhibiting 26 and 4-fold the regulatory activity of eculizumab and human Factor H, respectively, which highlights its therapeutic potential.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalia Ruiz-Molina
- Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Juliana Parsons
- Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Madeleine Müller
- Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | | | - Lennard L Bohlender
- Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Steffen Pumple
- Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Peter F Zipfel
- Department of Infection Biology, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology, Jena, Germany.,Institute of Microbiology, Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany
| | - Karsten Häffner
- Faculty of Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine IV, Medical Center, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Ralf Reski
- Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.,Signalling Research Centres BIOSS and CIBSS, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Eva L Decker
- Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.
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