JNK is required for effector T-cell function but not for T-cell activation (original) (raw)

Nature volume 405, pages 91–94 (2000)Cite this article

Abstract

The hallmark of T-cell activation is the production of interleukin 2 (IL-2). c-Jun amino-terminal kinase (JNK), a MAP kinase that phosphorylates c-Jun and other components of the AP-1 group of transcription factors1,2, has been implicated in the activation of IL-2 expression3,4. Previously, we found that T cells from mice deficient in the Jnk1 or Jnk2 gene can be activated and produce IL-2 normally, but are deficient in functional differentiation into Th1 or Th2 subsets5,6. However, studies of mice with compound mutations indicate that JNK1 and JNK2 are redundant during mouse development7. Here we use three new mouse models in which peripheral T cells completely lack JNK proteins or signalling, to test whether the JNK signalling pathway is crucial for IL-2 expression and T-cell activation. Unexpectedly, these T cells made more IL-2 and proliferated better than wild-type cells. However, production of effector T-cell cytokines did require JNK. Thus, JNK is necessary for T-cell differentiation but not for naive T-cell activation.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank D. Y. Loh and C. L. Stewart for providing reagents; L. Evangelisti, D. Butkus, C. Hughes and J. Stein for technical assistance; and F. Manzo for secretarial work. Supported by NIH grants and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. C.D. is a recipient of an Arthritis Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship. C.D. and D.D.Y. were Associates, C.T. is an Associate, and R.J.D. and R.A.F. are Investigators of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

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  1. Derek D. Yang & Roger J. Davis
    Present address: Lilly Research Laboratories, Indianapolis, Indiana, 46285, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Section of Immunobiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, 06520, Connecticut, USA
    Chen Dong, Derek D. Yang, Jie Xu & Richard A. Flavell
  2. Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology University of Massachusetts Medical School, Howard Hughes Medical Institute Program in Molecular Medicine, Worcester, 01605, Massachusetts, USA
    Cathy Tournier & Alan J. Whitmarsh

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  1. Chen Dong
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  2. Derek D. Yang
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  3. Cathy Tournier
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  4. Alan J. Whitmarsh
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  5. Jie Xu
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  6. Roger J. Davis
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  7. Richard A. Flavell
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Dong, C., Yang, D., Tournier, C. et al. JNK is required for effector T-cell function but not for T-cell activation .Nature 405, 91–94 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1038/35011091

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