Zinc supplementation inhibits complement activation in age-related macular degeneration.

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Smailhodzic D, van Asten F, Blom AM, Mohlin FC, den Hollander AI, van de Ven JP, van Huet RA, Groenewoud JM, Tian Y, Berendschot TT, Lechanteur YT, Fauser S, de Bruijn C, Daha MR, van der Wilt GJ, Hoyng CB, Klevering BJ

Zinc supplementation inhibits complement activation in age-related macular degeneration.

PLoS One. 2014 Nov 13;9(11):e112682. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0112682. eCollection 2014.

PubMed ID

25393287 [ View in PubMed

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Abstract

UNLABELLED: Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of blindness in the Western world. AMD is a multifactorial disorder but complement-mediated inflammation at the level of the retina plays a pivotal role. Oral zinc supplementation can reduce the progression of AMD but the precise mechanism of this protective effect is as yet unclear. We investigated whether zinc supplementation directly affects the degree of complement activation in AMD and whether there is a relation between serum complement catabolism during zinc administration and the complement factor H (CFH) gene or the Age-Related Maculopathy susceptibility 2 (ARMS2) genotype. In this open-label clinical study, 72 randomly selected AMD patients in various stages of AMD received a daily supplement of 50 mg zinc sulphate and 1 mg cupric sulphate for three months. Serum complement catabolism-defined as the C3d/C3 ratio-was measured at baseline, throughout the three months of supplementation and after discontinuation of zinc administration. Additionally, downstream inhibition of complement catabolism was evaluated by measurement of anaphylatoxin C5a. Furthermore, we investigated the effect of zinc on complement activation in vitro. AMD patients with high levels of complement catabolism at baseline exhibited a steeper decline in serum complement activation (p<0.001) during the three month zinc supplementation period compared to patients with low complement levels. There was no significant association of change in complement catabolism and CFH and ARMS2 genotype. In vitro zinc sulphate directly inhibits complement catabolism in hemolytic assays and membrane attack complex (MAC) deposition on RPE cells. This study provides evidence that daily administration of 50 mg zinc sulphate can inhibit complement catabolism in AMD patients with increased complement activation. This could explain part of the mechanism by which zinc slows AMD progression. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The Netherlands National Trial Register NTR2605.

DrugBank Data that Cites this Article

Drug Targets

Drug	Target	Kind	Organism	Pharmacological Action	Actions
Zinc chloride	Complement C3	Protein	Humans	Unknown	Inhibitor Ligand	Details
Zinc sulfate, unspecified form	Complement C3	Protein	Humans	Unknown	Inhibitor Ligand	Details