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Cloning of rat brain interleukin-18 cDNA
A C Culhane1, M D Hall, N J Rothwell
1School of Biological Sciences, University of Manchester, UK.
Molecular Psychiatry
|August 14, 1998
Summary
Interleukin-18 (IL-18), a potential member of the IL-1 family, is constitutively expressed in the adult rat brain. Caspase-1 cleaves rat IL-18, suggesting its role in neurodegeneration.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Immunology
- Molecular Biology
Background:
- The Interleukin-1 (IL-1) family, including IL-1 alpha, IL-1 beta, and IL-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1ra), plays a role in brain function and neurodegeneration.
- While IL-1 alpha and IL-1 beta are not directly neurotoxic, other IL-1 family members may contribute to neurodegenerative processes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the presence and processing of Interleukin-18 (IL-18) in the adult rat brain.
- To determine if IL-18 is a member of the IL-1 family and its potential role in neurodegeneration.
Main Methods:
- Cloning of IL-18 from adult rat brain.
- Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) to assess IL-18 expression in different brain regions.
- In vitro cleavage assays using caspase-1 and a caspase inhibitor (zVAD-DCB) to study IL-18 processing.
Main Results:
- IL-18 is constitutively expressed in various regions of the adult rat brain, including the cerebellum, hippocampus, hypothalamus, cortex, and striatum.
- Rat brain IL-18 shares significant sequence homology with mouse and human IL-18.
- Caspase-1 was demonstrated to cleave rat pro-IL-18 in vitro, and this cleavage was inhibited by zVAD-DCB.
Conclusions:
- Interleukin-18 (IL-18) is expressed in the adult rat brain and shows homology to other IL-1 family members.
- The processing of IL-18 by caspase-1 suggests a potential role in inflammatory and neurodegenerative pathways within the brain.