Kennedy J, Kelner G S, Kleyensteuber S, Schall T J, Weiss M C, Yssel H, Schneider P V, Cocks B G, Bacon K B, Zlotnik A
Department of Immunology, DNAX Research Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Palo Alto, CA 94304, USA.
J Immunol. 1995 Jul 1;155(1):203-9.
We describe the isolation of a cDNA that encodes human lymphotactin (Ltn), a new class of lymphocyte-specific chemokine. Human Ltn shows similarity to some members of the C-C chemokine family but has lost the first and third cysteine residues that are characteristic of the C-C and C-X-C chemokines. Ltn is chemotactic for lymphocytes but not for monocytes, a characteristic that makes it unique among chemokines. In addition, calcium flux desensitization studies indicate that Ltn uses a unique receptor. The human Ltn gene maps to a different chromosome than do the C-C and C-X-C chemokine families. Taken together, these characteristics indicate that Ltn is the first example of a new class of human chemokines with preferential effects on lymphocytes.
