Proteome profiling of interleukin-12 treated human T helper cells

Selective activation of T helper subsets 1 (Th1) and 2 (Th2) plays a crucial role in different pathological conditions. Th1 cell response is involved in pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases, such as type II diabetes and multiple sclerosis, and Th2 cell response in pathogenesis of allergy and asthma. Cytokine interleukin-12 (IL-12) is one of the key factors in the differentiation of naïve CD4(+) T cells into Th1 cells. In this study we used 2-DE and MS to find and identify IL-12 regulated proteins in human CD4(+) T cells. In total, 42 protein spots were found to be differentially expressed following IL-12 stimulation, of which 22 were up- and 20 down-regulated. Among the upregulated proteins there are a multifunctional cytokine macrophage migration inhibitory factor and a known IL-12 target gene Programmed cell death 4. Downregulated proteins include p21-activated kinase 2 and its upstream GTPase Cdc42. Compared to previous reports our analysis provides a new view on the IL-12 induced changes on CD4(+) T cells underscoring the importance of creating and combining the data generated at various levels to build a comprehensive view of a given biological process of the cell.