A Starfish Hemolymph Factor Which Activates Vertebrate Complement in the Presence of Cobra Venom Factor

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Abstract
In recent studies we demonstrated the presence of a factor(s) in hemolymphs of invertebrates which interacts with purified cobra venom factor (CVF) and lyses erythrocytes in the presence of vertebrate serum or invertebrate hemolymph treated with EDTA (1). These CVF-reacting components were to some extent interchangeable between vertebrate sera and invertebrate hemolymph but the most marked hemolytic activity was observed when starfish (Asterius forbesi) hemolymph was reacted with purified CVF and added to frog serum in EDTA (1). In the present studies, we have isolated a factor(s) from starfish hemolymph and have shown that the purified product is capable of participating with CVF in activating the complement (C) system of the frog. Materials and Methods. Vertebrate and invertebrate species. The frogs, Rana catesbeiana, were obtained from Schettles, Stillwater, Wis. The starfish (A. forbesi) were purchased from Marine Biological Laboratories, Woods Hole, Mass. The hemolymph was obtained from the starfish and then clarified according to methods described previously (1).

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