title: Nuclear accumulation of interferon gamma.
abstract: Examination of the interferon gamma (IFN-gamma) amino acid sequence revealed two conserved basic amino acid clusters similar to the prototype nuclear localization signal. We followed the fate of cell surface receptor-bound IFN-gamma in murine leukemia L1210 cells. A time- and temperature-dependent accumulation of murine IFN-gamma in the cell nucleus could be demonstrated by autoradiography and indirect immunofluorescence after the rapid isolation of nuclei. Human IFN-gamma was also internalized and translocated to the nucleus of murine L1210 cells transfected with and expressing the human IFN-gamma receptor, but it appeared to be retained by the nucleus only transiently. IFN-gamma molecules chemically crosslinked to their cell surface receptor remain capable of being translocated to the nucleus even as part of a receptor-ligand complex. Thus, the bipartite nuclear localization signal sequence appears to be functional and suggests that nuclear targeting could participate in IFN-gamma signal transduction.
authors.affiliation: Unité 365 Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Interférons et Cytokines, Institut Curie, Paris, France.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Bader
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Weitzerbin
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001345:Autoradiography; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D005455:Fluorescent Antibody Technique; D006801:Humans; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000378:metabolism*; D007457:Iodine Radioisotopes; D007700:Kinetics; D007939:Leukemia L1210 / Q000378:metabolism*; D051379:Mice; D017471:Receptors, Interferon / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000378:metabolism*; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000378:metabolism; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured; D000096743:Interferon gamma Receptor
chemical_list: D007371:Interferon-gamma; D007457:Iodine Radioisotopes; D017471:Receptors, Interferon; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D000096743:Interferon gamma Receptor