Description
Biological activity
Background information
IL-2, a potent lymphoid cell growth factor, is a typical four α-helix bundle cytokine. It is produced by activated T cells, especially the CD4+ T helper cell population. It plays an important role in both the activation and maintenance of immune responses and in lymphocyte development. IL-2 promotes proliferation and differentiation of T cells, NK cells and B cells and is involved in the elimination of self-reactive T cells. IL-2 signals through a receptor complex consisting of IL-2 receptor α-chain (CD25), β- chain, and common γ-chain. The latter two are also used for IL-15 signaling.
Quality description
Research-grade cytokines are suitable for a wide variety of cell culture applications. They are sterile-filtered prior to lyophilization. Generally, endotoxin levels are <0.1 ng/μg (<1 EU/μg), and purities are >95%. The biological activity is tested in appropriate bioassays.
Premium-grade cytokines offer the convenience of high and well-defined biological activities and allow exact unit dosing for demanding applications. The biological activity is determined after lyophilization and reconstitution, and normalized to WHO/NIBSC standards whenever available. In general, endotoxin levels are <0.01 ng/μg (<0.1 EU/μg), and purities are >97%. Lot-specific activities are stated in the Certificate of Analysis (www. miltenyibiotec.com/certificates).
Overview
Recombinant human IL-2 (interleukin 2) stimulates growth and differentiation of cells of the lymphoid lineage, such as T, NK, and B cells. IL-2 is a potent immunomodulatory cytokine, as it prevents autoimmunity and has key functions during infections. IL-2 IS stands for interleukin 2 "Improved Sequence", also termed aldesleukin, and is a variant of IL-2 with a serine substitution for the native cysteine at amino acid position 125. Human IL-2 IS is a recombinant protein optimized for use in cell culture, differentiation studies, and functional assays, and possesses the same biological properties as naturally occurring IL-2.
