Project R-6834

The unexplored role of interleukin-24 in multiple sclerosis. (Research)

The goal of this objective is to provide a complete characterization of the expression, regulation and function of IL24 and its receptors on peripheral immune cells of MS patients and controls. Together with the finding that IL-24 is produced by activated PBMCs of healthy donors15, our preliminary results suggest that both TH1 and TH17 cells from healthy donors and MS patients express IL-24 mRNA and protein, with a slightly higher expression in TH1 cells (Fig. 1A-B). Furthermore, IL-24 is detectable in serum, but not CSF, of controls and MS patients (Fig. 1C). In the small cohort of MS patients we studied so far, immunomodulatory therapy reduces the concentration of IL-24 in serum. In this objective, the cohort of MS patients and age/sex-matched healthy donors is expanded and the expression study is extended to other disease-related immune cells (CD8+ T cells, B cells, NK cells, monocytes/macrophages and dendritic cells). Expression levels are correlated to clinical parameters to reveal any functional role of this cytokine in the disease. After these expression studies, in vitro assays are performed to identify the effect of IL-24 on immune cell function. This objective will provide a first indication of the involvement of IL24 in the inflammatory responses in MS patients.

01 January 2016 - 31 December 2017