Abstract
Summary
Several transition series and IIB group metals were evaluated for effects on complement hemolysis of sheep red blood cells in vitro. Zinc and copper (10-4 M) strongly inhibited complement activity by 83% and 66%, respectively. However, while manganese inhibited slightly (17%), neither cobalt nor cadmium had effect in this concentration range. Further results showed that zinc pre-treatment did not inactivate individual reaction components, and that zinc did not affect the membrane-lysis step. Rather, zinc exerted its effect only when added concomitantly with complement, suggesting that it interferes with the binding and/or activation steps necessary to form the complete complement complex.
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