Human IL-27 ELISA Ready-SET-Go!®

Description: This Human IL-27 ELISA Ready-SET-Go!® set includes all of the necessary buffers and reagents to perform enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. This kit allows the specific detection of IL-27 with no detection of IL-35 or free p28 or EBI3. This set has been optimized for the accurate and precise measurement of human IL-27 in serum, plasma, and tissue culture supernatant samples. Serum and plasma samples must be diluted 2-fold in prepared assay diluent prior to evaluation in this ELISA.

IL-27 is a member of the IL-12 family, a subgroup of the IL-6 family of cytokines. It is a heterodimer of the subunits EBI3 (Epstein-Barr Virus Induced Gene 3), which is homologous to the p40 subunit shared by IL-12 and IL-23, and p28 (IL-30), which is homologous to p35. IL-27 is produced by activated dendritic cells and macrophages in response to TLR ligands and inflammatory cytokines.

The IL-27 receptor shares one subunit, gp130, with other members of the IL-6 family. The subunit WSX-1 (IL-27Rα, TCCR) is unique to IL-27 and is believed to be the only part of the receptor that interacts with the cytokine. The IL-27R is most abundantly expressed on activated T-cells and NK cells, although expression has also been shown on B-cells and naïve T-cells. IL-27R activation leads to the phosphorylation of Jak/STAT proteins, with STAT1 and STAT3 being critical to the function of IL-27. IL-27 has been shown to have both pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory effects. It influences the commitment of CD4⁺ T-cells toward the Th1 lineage by inducing the expression of the T-bet transcription factor and the upregulation of IL-12Rβ2. Its anti-inflammatory functions include the suppression of Th2 and Th17 proliferation and differentiation. Susceptibility to T-cell mediated autoimmunity has been observed in WSX-1 knockout mice.

References: Stumhofer JS and Hunter CA. Advances in understanding the anti-inflammatory properties of IL-27. Immunol Lett. 2008 May 15; 117(2): 123-30.

Stumhofer JS, Laurence A, Wilson EH, Huang E, Tato CM, Johnson LM, Villarino AV, Huang Q, Yoshimura A, Sehy D, Saris CJM, OShea JJ, Henninghausen L, Ernst M, Hunter CA. Interleukin 27 negatively regulates the development of interleukin 17- producing T helper cells during chronic inflammation of the central nervous system. Nat Immunol. 2006 Sep; 7(9): 899-901

Yoshimura A, Yoshida H, Miyazaki Y, Kinjyo I, Ishibashi T, Yoshimura T, Takeda A, Hamano S. Two sided roles of IL-27: induction of Th1 differentiation on Naïve CD4+ T cells versus suppression of proinflammatory cytokine production including IL-23-induced IL-17 on activated CD4+ T cells partially through STAT3-dependent mechanism. J Immunol. 2006; 177: 5377-85.