Immunomodulation with soluble IFN-gamma receptor: preliminary study.

Several in vivo experiments support the hypothesis that an IFN-gamma antagonist may have therapeutic applications in autoimmune diseases, hypersensitivities, and alloreactions. IFN-gamma exerts its biological activity through the binding to a single-chain cell surface receptor. The protein that corresponds to the external domain of mouse IFN-gamma receptor was expressed in insect cells infected with recombinant baculovirus; this protein was characterized and used in vivo as a prototype of the IFN-gamma antagonist. This protein does not show any strong antigenicity after in vivo injection in mice. Despite a blood half-life of only 1-3 hr as demonstrated in pharmacokinetic experiments, the mouse soluble IFN-gamma R was able to modify the onset of acute GVHD (alloreaction) and chronic GVHD (lupuslike disease).