ABSTRACT
Following incubation of C. neoformans with normal human serum, complement activation occurs resulting in deposition on the capsular surface ofcopious quantities of the third component of complement (C3), mainly in the form of iC3b [24]. Complement activation proceeds mostly through the alternative pathway, and can be reproduced using purified alternative pathway components in lieu of serum [25]. Roughly 10 times greater numbers of complement molecules get deposited on encapsulated C. neoformans than on acapsular C. neoformans or other fungi of comparative size. An in vivo consequence is that complement depletion can result [26J. In such situations, macrophage recognition of C. neoformans may not occur.
