Distribution of hemolytic complement in the normal cornea
B. J. Mondino and K. J. Brady
Hemolytic activities in the central cornea were compared with hemolytic
activities in the peripheral cornea for each of the following complement
components: C1, C4, C2, C3, C5, C6, and C7. For all seven complement
components studied, hemolytic activities in the peripheral cornea were
higher than hemolytic activities in the central cornea, and the differences
were statistically significant. The most striking difference was for C1,
which had a ratio of mean hemolytic activity in the peripheral cornea to
that in the central cornea of almost 5:1. For the other six complement
components, the ratio of the mean hemolytic activity in the peripheral
cornea to that in the central cornea was approximately 1.2:1. This
distribution of complement activity in the cornea suggests that the major
source of complement components is the limbal vessels and that complement
components diffuse from the limbus to the central cornea.
