Progress toward the understanding of the molecular mechanisms of interferon action

Abstract

Results of cellular and molecular analyses of type I (IFN-alpha and IFN-beta) and type II (IFN-gamma) human interferons demonstrate that these proteins differentially regulate the expression of certain cellular genes and induce mechanistically distinct antiviral states in human cells. Although none of the human genes whose expression is regulated by IFN have yet been localized to human chromosome 21, the localization of the receptor for the type I IFNs to chromosome 21 may have important consequences with regard to the functions of the interferon system in Down Syndrome individuals.