Bancroft A J, McKenzie A N, Grencis R K
School of Biological Science, University of Manchester, United Kingdom.
J Immunol. 1998 Apr 1;160(7):3453-61.
Mice in which either the IL-4 or the IL-13 gene has been disrupted (IL-4 KO and IL-13 KO) were susceptible to infection with the intestinal nematode Trichuris muris, whereas their wild-type littermates were highly resistant and expelled the parasite. IL-4 KO mice showed diminished Th2-type responses with T. muris infection and also failed to produce parasite-specific IgG1 Abs. Although IL-13 KO mice made reduced Th2-type responses early in infection, they were capable of generating strong Th2-type responses at later time points and were unable to regulate the magnitude of their Ab isotype response. These results confirm the importance of IL-4 in resistance to T. muris and provide the first demonstration of an important role for IL-13 in resistance to helminth infection. The IL-13 KO mouse had a separate phenotype to that of the IL-4 KO mouse, suggesting that both IL-4 and IL-13 play important yet different roles in mediating immunity to intestinal helminths.
白细胞介素-4（IL-4）基因或白细胞介素-13（IL-13）基因被破坏的小鼠（IL-4基因敲除小鼠和IL-13基因敲除小鼠）易受肠道线虫毛首鞭形线虫感染，而它们的野生型同窝小鼠具有高度抗性并能驱除寄生虫。IL-4基因敲除小鼠在感染毛首鞭形线虫时Th2型反应减弱，且也无法产生寄生虫特异性IgG1抗体。虽然IL-13基因敲除小鼠在感染早期Th2型反应有所降低，但它们在后期能够产生强烈的Th2型反应，并且无法调节其抗体同种型反应的强度。这些结果证实了IL-4在抵抗毛首鞭形线虫中的重要性，并首次证明了IL-13在抵抗蠕虫感染中的重要作用。IL-13基因敲除小鼠具有与IL-4基因敲除小鼠不同的表型，这表明IL-4和IL-13在介导对肠道蠕虫的免疫中都发挥着重要但不同的作用。
