Monoallelic expression of the interleukin-2 locus.
The lymphokine interleukin-2 (IL-2) is responsible for autocrine cell cycle progression and regulation of immune responses. Uncontrolled secretion of IL-2 results in adverse reactions ranging from anergy, to aberrant T cell activation, to autoimmunity. With the use of fluorescent in situ hybridization and single-cell polymerase chain reaction in cells with different IL-2 alleles, IL-2 expression in mature thymocytes and T cells was found to be tightly controlled by monoallelic expression. Because IL-2 is encoded at a nonimprinted autosomal locus, this result represents an unusual regulatory mode for controlling the precise expression of a single gene.
Holländer
G A
GA
Pediatric Immunology, Department of Research and Children's Hospital, Basel University Medical School, 4031 Basel, Switzerland.
Zuklys
S
S
Morel
C
C
Mizoguchi
E
E
Mobisson
K
K
Simpson
S
S
Terhorst
C
C
Wishart
W
W
Golan
D E
DE
Bhan
A K
AK
Burakoff
S J
SJ
D000483:Alleles; D000818:Animals; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology*; D003208:Concanavalin A / Q000494:pharmacology; D004261:DNA Replication; D005260:Female; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D006579:Heterozygote; D017404:In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence; D007376:Interleukin-2 / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics*; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D009115:Muridae; D009154:Mutation; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D016196:S Phase; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
D007376:Interleukin-2; D003208:Concanavalin A