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Kinetics of induction and molecular size of mRNAs encoding human interleukin-2 and γ-interferon

Nature volume 297, pages 236–239 (1982)Cite this article

Abstract

T-cell growth factor (TCGF), or interleukin-2 (IL-2), and immune or γ-interferon (IFN-γ) are lymphokines possessing powerful immunoregulatory properties. IL-2 is essential for the in vitro proliferation and maturation of certain classes of T lymphocyte1,2, particularly cytotoxic3,4 and helper5 T cells, and also activates natural killer cells6. IFN-γ is considerably more active than IFN-α and -β as activator of natural killer cells and as antiproliferative agent, relative to its antiviral activity7–11. As a step towards understanding the regulation of expression of these proteins, we report here the induction of mRNA species encoding IL-2 and IFN-γ in mitogen-stimulated normal human lymphocytes and their expression in Xenopus laevis oocytes. On microinjection, distinct species of mRNA sedimenting at 10–10.5S and 13–13.5S direct the synthesis and secretion of active IL-2 and IFN-γ respectively. A second species of IL-2 mRNA is consistently revealed, sedimenting at 13–13.5S and comprising about 20% of the total IL-2 mRNA activity. During induction, an initial concomitant rise in IL-2 and IFN-γ mRNA activities is followed promptly by a concomitant decline in the rate of their accumulation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Molecular Virology, The Hebrew University – Hadassah Medical School, 91 010, Jerusalem, Israel

    Shimon Efrat, Shlomo Pilo & Raymond Kaempfer

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  1. Shimon Efrat
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  2. Shlomo Pilo
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Efrat, S., Pilo, S. & Kaempfer, R. Kinetics of induction and molecular size of mRNAs encoding human interleukin-2 and γ-interferon. Nature 297, 236–239 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1038/297236a0

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