title: The biology and therapeutic potential of interleukin 27.
abstract: Interleukin (IL-) 27 is a helical cytokine of the greater IL-6/IL-12 family with a broad range of pro- and anti-inflammatory properties. It can skew T helper cell development, suppress T cell proliferation, stimulate cytotoxic T cell activity, induce isotype switching in B cells, and has diverse effects on innate immune cells. In vivo, its most important role appears to be that of immune regulation, as mice with defects in IL-27 or its receptor display enhanced immune responses in a range of infectious and noninfectious situations. In this review, we discuss the body of knowledge on IL-27 and its potential therapeutic utility.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Biology, Genentech, Inc., 1 DNA Way, South San Francisco, CA 94080, USA.
authors.forename: Marcel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Batten
authors.forename: Nico
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ghilardi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D016207:Cytokines / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D020381:Interleukin-17 / Q000276:immunology* / Q000502:physiology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D053645:Interleukin-2 Receptor alpha Subunit; D051379:Mice; D018121:Receptors, Cytokine; D018123:Receptors, Interleukin; D015398:Signal Transduction; D018417:Th1 Cells / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D016207:Cytokines; C508017:IL2RA protein, human; C484747:Il27ra protein, mouse; D020381:Interleukin-17; D053645:Interleukin-2 Receptor alpha Subunit; D018121:Receptors, Cytokine; D018123:Receptors, Interleukin