LAUSR

Adverse activation of the complement cascade in the innate immune system appears to be involved in development of vascular complications in diabetes. Dipeptidyl peptidase‐4 (DPP‐4) is a cell surface serine protease expressed in a variety of tissues. DPP‐4 inhibitors are widely used in treatment of type 2 diabetes and appear to yield beneficial pleiotropic effects beyond their glucose‐lowering action, for example, renoprotective and anti‐inflammatory properties, but the exact mechanisms remain unknown. We hypothesised that DPP‐4 inhibitors block adverse complement activation by inhibiting complement‐activating serine proteases.