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Interleukin-18 (IL-18) and infectious diseases, with special emphasis on diseases induced by intracellular pathogens
1Department of Molecular Pathology, The Research Institute of Tuberculosis, Japan Anti-tuberculosis Association, 3-1-24 Matsuyama, Kiyose, Tokyo 204-0022, Japan.
Abstract:
Interleukin-18 (IL-18) is a novel cytokine mainly produced by activated macrophages. IL-18 was originally called interferon-gamma inducing factor, due to its action in inducing IFN-gamma secretion from Th1 cells, NK cells and NKT cells. It has been reported that IL-18 may play important roles in various diseases including cancer and infectious diseases. This review deals with the roles of IL-18 in infectious diseases, with special emphasis on IL-18 in infectious diseases caused by intracellular pathogens including Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Mycobacterium leprae, Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella typhimurium.