( Monitor activation status of inte...)New Reporter Plasmids for Studying Interferon-Stimulated Signal Transduction,,,Pathways

Monitor activation status of interferon-stimulated signaling pathways

Li Xu Tim Sanchez Mary Buchanan Chao-Feng Zheng
Stratagene

Stratagenes family of PathDetect cis-reporting systems now includes the GAS and ISRE reporting systems, to better study the activation of signal transduction pathways stimulated by interferon - a, - b, or - g. The pISRE-Luc cis-reporter plasmid contains direct repeats of the interferon-stimulated response element (ISRE) found in the promoter of the 54-kDa interferon-stimulated gene (ISG54); the pGAS-Luc cis-reporter plasmid contains direct repeats of the gamma-activating sequence from the promoter of the guanylate-binding protein. In these plasmids, a basic promoter element (TATA box), and the direct repeats of ISRE or GAS, control expression of the luciferase gene. The pISRE-Luc and pGAS-Luc reporter plasmids monitor the activation status of signaling molecules and transcription factors that mediate the function of interferons.

Interferons (IFNs) are soluble proteins that act as local hormones, inhibit viral replication, and activate certain host defense responses. These interesting proteins modulate the expression of many genes and elicit a wide range of biological functions, including tissue repair, activation of various blood cells involved in antibody production, inflammation, and host defense against viruses.^2,3 IFNs have also been used as therapeutic agents against many viral diseases, including acquired immune-deficiency syndrome (AIDS).^1,2,3

IFN-a and IFN-b are interferons synthesized by many cell types following viral infection and have two major functions: They inhibit viral replication by activating cellular genes whose products are
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