The role of interleukin-6 in endotoxin induced uveitis in wild-type and IL-6 deficient mice

P. Kievit, J. M. Park, L. M. O'Rourke, S. R. Planck, J. T. Rosenbaum

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

1 Scopus citations

Abstract

Purpose: Interleukin-6 is a cytokine that is present in ocular fluids from inflamed eyes and is proposed to serve as a major mediator in eye inflammation. Injection of recombinant human IL-6 in rats (Hoekzema R et al. 1992. Invest. Ophthal. Vis. Sci. 33; 532-539) induced acute uveitis, suggesting that IL-6 is a key cytokine in the pathogenesis. In this study, the requirement for IL-6 in endotoxin induced uveitis (EIU) was examined using IL-6 deficient mice. In addition, the capability of murine IL-6 to induce uveitis was tested. Methods: Endotoxin (250 ng) was injected bilaterally into the posterior segment of the eyes in IL-6 deficient and wild type mice (n=8). After 24 hours, eyes were processed for histology and inflammation was determined by scoring the number of infiltrating cells in anterior chamber and posterior segment. To test the ability of IL-6 to induce uveitis, various concentrations of murine IL-6 (1, 4, 10, 20, 200 ng per eye; n=4 per dose) were injected in the posterior segment. Results: Histological examination of the IL-6 deficient and wild-type mice showed no significant difference (p=0.07) in the number of infiltrating cells (63.5±16.9 and 26.5±8.81 respectively). Injection of murine IL-6 in the posterior chamber did not cause significant inflammation at any dose tested. Conclusion: These results show that IL-6, although highly expressed in EIU, is not a key cytokine in the induction of inflammation.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)S543
JournalInvestigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science
Volume37
Issue number3
StatePublished - Feb 15 1996

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Ophthalmology
  • Sensory Systems
  • Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'The role of interleukin-6 in endotoxin induced uveitis in wild-type and IL-6 deficient mice'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this