Isolation, characterization, and cloning of porcine complement component C7.

Activation of the complement system through the classical, alternative, or lectin pathway results in the formation of the terminal complement complex. C7 plays an integral role in the assembly of this complex with target cell membranes. To date, only human C7 has been cloned and characterized; thus, in this study, we characterized the porcine complement component C7. Porcine C7 was isolated by affinity chromatography as a single glycoprotein with an approximate molecular mass of 90 kDa and 100 kDa under reducing and nonreducing conditions, respectively. The full-length porcine C7 cDNA was isolated, and the predicted amino acid sequence exhibited 80% identity with human C7 with conservation of the cysteine backbone and two putative N-linked glycosylation sites. Porcine C7 mRNA expression was detected in all tissues investigated, except polymorphonuclear and mononuclear leukocytes. Addition of purified porcine C7 restored the hemolytic activity of C7-depleted human sera in a dose-dependent manner. A functionally inhibitory mAb against porcine C7 attenuated the hemolytic activity of human, rabbit, or rat sera, suggesting an important conserved C7 epitope among species. These data demonstrate that porcine and human C7 are highly conserved, sharing structural and functional characteristics.

Primary structure and functional characterization of a soluble, alternatively spliced form of B7-1.

Recent studies have suggested that soluble forms of B7-1 and B7-2 may exist, but transcripts that code for these molecules have not been previously described. In this study, we report the cloning and characterization of an alternatively spliced soluble form of porcine B7-1 (sB7-1) that lacks exons coding for both the transmembrane and cytoplasmic domains. Northern blot analysis of RNA from alveolar macrophages revealed an approximate 3:1 ratio of the transmembrane form of B7-1 mRNA relative to sB7-1 mRNA. Porcine B7-1 was present on the surface of both B and T cells following stimulation with PMA/ionomycin. A histidine-tagged form of porcine sB7-1 (sB7-1-His) interacted with both CD28 and CTLA-4, and effectively blocked IL-2 production from human responder cells stimulated with PHA and either porcine or human stimulator cells. In addition, sB7-1-His inhibited human T cell proliferation in response to porcine or human peripheral blood leukocytes. This study is the first report of an alternatively spliced form of B7 that codes for a soluble protein. Furthermore, these data demonstrate that porcine B7-1 interacts with the human receptors CD28 and CTLA-4, suggesting a potential role for this molecule in pig to human xenotransplantation. Possible physiological functions for the soluble form of B7-1 are discussed.