Fig. 3

Complement activating capacities of HIV-1 gp120 derivative peptides CNNK and CNNQ and the NP-coupled CNNQK. a Pooled normal human sera (NHS) or inactivated sera were added to peptide-coated or IgG-coated plates. The deposited complement components C3, C4, and C9 were detected by anti-human C3-HRP, and anti-human C4 and C9 followed by HRP-conjugated anti-goat IgG, respectively. b C3 deposition from NHS is compared with that of C3 or C1q depleted serum and from NHS inactivated with heat or EDTA. c Comparison of C3 deposition induced by CNNK and the modified CNNQ peptide, and by human IgG. d CNNQK and β60-74Cit peptide-coupled NPs activate the C5b-9 terminal complex formation in human serum. Statistics: a, b, d analyzed with ANOVA, c analyzed with paired t test, means ± SD are shown (*p <0.05, **p <0.01, ***p <0.001). EDTA ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid, OD optical density, PLGA poly(d,l-lactic-co-glycolic acid), RA rheumatoid arthritis