PRIMITIVE CYTOKINES AND CYTOKINE RECEPTORS IN INVERTEBRATES - THE SEASTAR ASTERIAS-RUBENS AS A MODEL OF STUDY

It has been previously demonstrated that the sea star axial organ is a primitive immune organ. Phagocytic, lymphoid-like cells have been cha racterized with properties similar to those of vertebrates. There is a lso evidence for an invertebrate cytokine network because IL-1 and TNF -like activities are clearly demonstrable. In addition, the authors ha ve previously described preliminary evidence for IL-2-like activity in the sea star. In the present report, the authors obtained evidence fo r the presence of IL-1- and IL-2-like molecules on axial organ cells. More interestingly, the results suggested that sea star cells express structures similar to human receptors for IL-1, IL-2, IL-6 and IFN-gam ma.