Kirman I, Vainer B, Nielsen O H
The James Buchanan Brady Foundation, Department of Urology, Cornell Medical Center, New York, NY, USA.
Inflamm Res. 1998 Jul;47(7):285-9. doi: 10.1007/s000110050331.
This review focuses on the biological effects of the newly discovered cytokine, interleukin 15 (IL-15), in chronic inflammatory disorders. IL-15 shares biological activities with IL-2, and like IL-2 it is a member of the four-helix bundle cytokine family. IL-15 interacts with a heterotrimeric receptor that consists of the beta and gamma subunits of the IL-2 receptor (IL-2R) as well as a specific, high-affinity IL-15-binding subunit, IL-1SRalpha. IL-15 is produced by macrophages and various other cells in response to environmental stimuli and infectious agents, and it is important for the growth and differentiation of T and B lymphocytes, natural killer cells, macrophages, and monocytes as well as it activates a number of important intracellular signaling molecules, including the Janus kinases and members of the transcription factor family of signal transducers and activators of transcription. These facts suggest that IL- 15 may play a pivotal role both in protective immune responses and in the pathogenesis of various chronic immuno-inflammatory disorders. The important new insight into the role of IL-15 in diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, sarcoidosis, chronic hepatitis C, and ulcerative colitis are reviewed in this paper.
本综述聚焦于新发现的细胞因子白细胞介素15（IL-15）在慢性炎症性疾病中的生物学效应。IL-15与IL-2具有共同的生物学活性，并且与IL-2一样，它是四螺旋束细胞因子家族的成员。IL-15与一种异源三聚体受体相互作用，该受体由IL-2受体（IL-2R）的β和γ亚基以及一个特异性的、高亲和力的IL-15结合亚基IL-1SRα组成。IL-15由巨噬细胞和其他各种细胞在环境刺激和感染因子的作用下产生，对T和B淋巴细胞、自然杀伤细胞、巨噬细胞和单核细胞的生长和分化很重要，并且它还激活一些重要的细胞内信号分子，包括Janus激酶以及信号转导子和转录激活子转录因子家族成员。这些事实表明，IL-15可能在保护性免疫反应和各种慢性免疫炎症性疾病的发病机制中都发挥关键作用。本文综述了IL-15在类风湿性关节炎、结节病、慢性丙型肝炎和溃疡性结肠炎等疾病中作用的重要新见解。
