Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 11, 2026

Isolation and Th17 Differentiation of Naïve CD4 T Lymphocytes
Published on: September 27, 2013
Cutting edge: CD4 is not required for the functional activity of IL-16
N L Mathy1, N Bannert, S G Norley
1Paul-Ehrlich Institute, Langen, Germany. matna@pei.de
Abstract:
IL-16 functions as a chemoattractant factor, inhibitor of HIV replication, and inducer of proinflammatory cytokine production. Previous studies have suggested that CD4 is the receptor for IL-16, because only CD4+ cells respond to IL-16 and both the anti-CD4 Ab OKT4 and soluble CD4 can block IL-16 function. However, these are only indirect evidence of a requirement for CD4, and to date a direct interaction between IL-16 and CD4 has not been shown. In this paper, we report that cells from CD4 knockout mice are as responsive to IL-16 as their CD4 wild-type equivalents in both assays testing for IL-16 function (chemotaxis and production of proinflammatory cytokines). In addition, the inhibitory effect of soluble CD4 on IL-16 function observed using CD4 wild type murine cells was not observed using CD4 knockout cells. These data demonstrate that CD4 is not required for IL-16 function and suggest that another molecule acts as the major receptor.
Related Concept Videos
Cell-mediated Immune Responses
T Cell Activation and Clonal Selection
Naive T cells that have not yet encountered an antigen express two primary CD...
T Cell Types and Functions
Th1 cells stimulate dendritic cells to express necessary co-stimulatory molecules on their surfaces for...
Immunodeficiency Diseases
There are three main causes of immunodeficiency disorders...

