AUTHOR=Agostinis Chiara , Vidergar Romana , Belmonte Beatrice , Mangogna Alessandro , Amadio Leonardo , Geri Pietro , Borelli Violetta , Zanconati Fabrizio , Tedesco Francesco , Confalonieri Marco , Tripodo Claudio , Kishore Uday , Bulla Roberta TITLE=Complement Protein C1q Binds to Hyaluronic Acid in the Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma Microenvironment and Promotes Tumor Growth JOURNAL=Frontiers in Immunology VOLUME=8 YEAR=2017 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/immunology/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2017.01559 DOI=10.3389/fimmu.2017.01559 ISSN=1664-3224 ABSTRACT=
C1q is the first recognition subcomponent of the complement classical pathway, which acts toward the clearance of pathogens and apoptotic cells. C1q is also known to modulate a range of functions of immune and non-immune cells, and has been shown to be involved in placental development and sensorial synaptic pruning. We have recently shown that C1q can promote tumor by encouraging their adhesion, migration, and proliferation in addition to angiogenesis and metastasis. In this study, we have examined the role of human C1q in the microenvironment of malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM), a rare form of cancer commonly associated with exposure to asbestos. We found that C1q was highly expressed in all MPM histotypes, particularly in epithelioid rather than in sarcomatoid histotype. C1q avidly bound high and low molecular weight hyaluronic acid (HA)