Deficiency of the complement regulator CD59a enhances disease severity, demyelination and axonal injury in murine acute experimental allergic encephalomyelitis.

There is a growing body of evidence implicating complement and, in particular, the terminal pathway (membrane attack complex; MAC) in inducing demyelination in multiple sclerosis and experimental allergic encephalomyelitis. In this paper, we examined the disease course and pathological changes in mice deficient in the major regulator of MAC assembly, CD59a, during the course of acute experimental allergic encephalomyelitis induced by immunisation with recombinant myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein. Disease incidence and severity were significantly increased in CD59a-deficient mice.