Abstract
Complement system is one of the central part of innate immunity partly responsible for recognition and removal of foreign materials, not only pathogens but also artificial nanoparticles. Complement system composed of more than 30 proteins causes cascade enzymatic activation, produces various bioactive substances, and finally induces inflammation and phagocytosis of foreign materials. It is well known that artificial nanoparticles activate complement system and physicochemical properties of nanoparticles affect level of complement activation, resulting in unexpected pharmacokinetics change of nanoparticles and toxicity. Hence, it is important to understand the mechanism behind complement activation by nanoparticles. In addition, intrinsic role of complement system in immune response is useful for development of vaccine. In this review, we introduce the negative and positive aspect of complement activation against nanoparticles.
