Expressed gene sequences of the equine cytokines interleukin-17 and interleukin-23.

The research focuses on the cloning and characterization of two types of equine cytokines, interleukin-17 and interleukin-23, obtained from horse intestinal tissue and peripheral blood mononuclear cells respectively.

Overview of the Study

• The study aims to examine the characteristics of the expressed gene sequences of two cytokines, named interleukin-17 (IL-17) and interleukin-23 (IL-23), in horses.
• These cytokines were obtained from two sources: equine intestinal tissue provided the IL-17, while IL-23 came from equine peripheral blood mononuclear cells.

Methods and Results

• The researchers initially cloned these equine cytokines and then studied their characteristics.
• The cloned equine IL-17 consists of 462 nucleotides in the translated region, sharing 84% and 75% identity with known human and mouse sequences, respectively.
• When considering the deduced amino acid sequences, the identity with human and mouse is slightly less, at 76% and 70% respectively.
• The equine IL-23 instead has 579 nucleotides in the translated region, and its identity was found to be 89% with human sequences and 77% with mouse sequences.
• Similar to IL-17, the deduced amino acid sequences identity of equine IL-23 with human and mouse sequences is 89% and 70%, respectively.

Purpose and Implications

• These gene sequences were identified as part of the U.S. Veterinary Immune Reagent Network’s initiative. The goal of this initiative is to develop reagents that could assist veterinary researchers to investigate diseases in livestock species.
• The identification and in-depth understanding of these cytokines could thus be a valuable contribution to veterinary medicine, aiding in the discovery of new treatments for diseases that afflict livestock.