Importance of selectively targeting the mode of action of IL-15

Interleukin (IL)-15 is a cytokine with different modes of action, and a new article describes why it is important to selectively target the mode of action of the cytokine rather than IL-15 itself to inhibit its activity. The article is published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Interferon & Cytokine Research (JICR). Click here to read the article now.

IL-15 has anti-cancer properties but is also considered as a pro-inflammatory cytokine involved in the pathogenesis of several autoimmune inflammatory diseases.

Erwan Mortier, Mike Maillasson, and Agnès Ouéméner, from Nantes University and LabEX IGO, review the different approaches researchers are using to inhibit IL-15 and its receptor, and discuss the effects of these inhibitors in inflammatory autoimmune diseases and transplantation, infectious diseases, and cancer. They also review the results of clinical testing of humanized anti-IL-15 monoclonal antibodies.

“IL-15 is an ambivalent cytokine, and understanding its function provides important clues for its use as a therapeutic agent, either by promoting or inhibiting its action,” state the authors. 

“This new article provides an excellent review of the current state of knowledge regarding IL-15 and its use as both a therapeutic agent and as a target for various inhibitors,” says Journal of Interferon & Cytokine Research Executive Editor Raymond P. Donnelly, PhD.

About the Journal
Journal of Interferon & Cytokine Research (JICR) is an authoritative peer-reviewed journal published monthly online with open access options and in print that covers all aspects of interferons and cytokines from basic science to clinical applications. Journal of Interferon & Cytokine Research is an official journal of the International Cytokine & Interferon Society. Complete tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed on the JICR website.

About the Publisher
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers, is known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research. Its biotechnology trade magazine, GEN (Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News), was the first in its field and is today the industry’s most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm’s more than 100 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website.