How is inflammation caused by immune complexes in glomerulus?

➢Once deposited in the kidney, immune complexes may eventually be cleared by degradation or phagocytosis, mostly by infiltrating leukocytes and mesangial cells. ➢The inflammatory reaction may then subside if the exposure to the inciting antigen is short-lived and limited, as in most cases of poststreptococcal or acute infection–related GN. ➢However, if exposure to antigen is sustained, repeated cycles of immune complex formation, deposition, and injury occur, leading to chronic GN. ➢In some cases, the source of chronic antigenic exposure is clear (hepatitis B virus infection and SLE), but more often the antigen is unknown.