Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2003 May;94(5):405-11.
doi: 10.1111/j.1349-7006.2003.tb01455.x.

New aspects of IFN-alpha/beta signalling in immunity, oncogenesis and bone metabolism

Akinori Takaoka  1 , Tadatsugu Taniguchi
Affiliations
Review

New aspects of IFN-alpha/beta signalling in immunity, oncogenesis and bone metabolism

Akinori Takaoka et al. Cancer Sci. 2003 May.

Abstract

Although interferons (IFNs) were originally identified as humoral factors that confer an antiviral state upon cells, they have been demonstrated to be multifunctional in a variety of biological systems. The IFN-alpha/beta system modulates not only the cellular immune response to viral and bacterial infections, but also the oncogenic process and bone metabolism. Further studies have revealed additional unique facets of the IFN-alpha/beta system. A weak signal by constitutively produced IFN-alpha/beta is critical not only for the regulation of cellular amplification of IFN-alpha/beta production upon viral infection or the enhancement of signalling by other cytokines, but also for the regulation of adaptive immune responses, such as the enhancement of CD8()+ T cell activation. Furthermore, IFN-beta signalling is critical for the regulation of the bone-resorbing osteoclasts. In this review, we focus on the newly discovered roles of the IFN-alpha/beta system in host defense and bone remodeling, particularly on the functions of the weak IFN-alpha/beta signalling in the context of what we refer to as the "revving-up" model.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. De Maeyer E, De Maeyer‐Guignard J. In: Interferons and other regulatory cytokines. New York : John Wiley and Sons; 1988.
    1. Vilcek J, Sen GS. Interferons and other cytokines. In: Fields DM, Knipe PM, Howley PM, editors . Fields virology. 3rd ed. Philadelphia : Lippincott‐Raven; 1996. p. 375–99.
    1. Pestka S, Langer JA, Zoon KC, Samuel CE. Interferons and their actions. Anna Rev Biochem 1987; 56: 727–77. - PubMed
    1. Biron CA, Nguyen KB, Pien GC, Cousens LP, Salazar‐Mather TP. Natural killer cells in antiviral defense: function and regulation by innate cytokines. Annu Rev Immunol 1999; 17: 189–220. - PubMed
    1. Bocci V. The physiological interferon response. Immunol Today 1985; 6: 7–9. - PubMed