The research could also indicate how special chaperone proteins can inhibit the accumulation of other harmful molecules, such as those linked to Alzheimer’s disease. It then keeps the MAC from increasing more of the components it requires to completely accumulate and punch holes. The findings showed that clusterin binds to a precursor version of the MAC dissolved in our bloodstream. “Seeing how these proteins stop MAC provides the first clues into how this branch of the immune system can be controlled and shows us how these chaperones might capture other harmful proteins in the blood.” Here we discovered how chaperones in the blood capture rogue molecules and prevent them from damaging human cells,” explained lead researcher Dr Doryen Bubeck from Controlling MAC project coordinator Imperial College London (ICL) in a news release. “When a pathogen is detected, our immune system goes into overdrive to make MACs and not all of them reach their bacterial targets.

This revealed how the chaperones prevent MACs from becoming completely functional. They captured and examined in exceptional detail MAC precursor molecules confined to the chaperone proteins. The results were published in the journal ‘Nature Communications’. Researchers supported by the EU-funded Controlling MAC and EPIC-XS projects have uncovered how these special proteins in the blood stop the immune system from damaging our own cells with overproduced molecules. This understanding has been missing until now. However, the scientific community does not know how. Special chaperone proteins called clusterin and vitronectin help to prevent MACs from causing unwanted attacks. Understanding how MAC activity is controlled Controlling MAC activity requires deep insight into their structure and function. If left unchecked, MACs directly lead to collateral damage to healthy cells and cause human disease. Those that do not reach their targets end up in the bloodstream where they can have detrimental effects. When an invader is discovered, our immune system produces many MACs. The bacteria ultimately dies if enough holes are punched.

They punch tiny holes in an invading bacteria’s membrane. The membrane attack complex (MAC) is a set of proteins typically formed on the surface of pathogen cell membranes.

Rogue Invader instal the new for mac