Submitted September 18, 2008
Accepted March 25, 2009
IFN-
1 (IL-29) inhibits GATA3 expression and suppresses Th2 responses in human naive and memory T cells
Jihong Dai, Nicholas J. Megjugorac, Grant E. Gallagher, Raymond Y.L. Yu, and Grant Gallagher*
Genetic Immunology Laboratory, HUMIGEN, the Institute for Genetic Immunology, Hamilton, NJ, United States
* Corresponding author; email: g.gallagher{at}humigen.org.
IFN-lambda-1 (IFN-
1/IL-29) plays a novel, emerging role in the inhibition of human Th2 responses. Here, we demonstrate that both naive and memory human CD4+ T cells express mRNA for the IFN-
1 specific receptor, IL-28R
and are responsive to IFN-
1. Expression of Th2 cytokines (IL-4 and IL-13) was suppressed in naive and memory CD4+ T cells by IFN-
1, without affecting their proliferation. Further, acquisition of IL-4R
expression following stimulation was inhibited by IFN-
1, as was GATA3 expression. Finally, IFN-
1 diminished the change in cell-surface phenotype that accompanies differentiation of "central memory" T cells into "effector memory" T cells. Taken together, our data describe unique immunomodulatory effects of IFN-
1 and identify novel mechanisms for the reduction of existing Th2 responses and the regulation of new ones, in circulating naive and memory CD4+ T cells.