| UniProt functional annotation for Q8IU54 | |||
| UniProt code: Q8IU54. |
| Organism: | Homo sapiens (Human). | |
| Taxonomy: | Eukaryota; Metazoa; Chordata; Craniata; Vertebrata; Euteleostomi; Mammalia; Eutheria; Euarchontoglires; Primates; Haplorrhini; Catarrhini; Hominidae; Homo. | |
| Function: | Cytokine with antiviral, antitumour and immunomodulatory activities. Plays a critical role in the antiviral host defense, predominantly in the epithelial tissues. Acts as a ligand for the heterodimeric class II cytokine receptor composed of IL10RB and IFNLR1, and receptor engagement leads to the activation of the JAK/STAT signaling pathway resulting in the expression of IFN-stimulated genes (ISG), which mediate the antiviral state. Has a restricted receptor distribution and therefore restricted targets: is primarily active in epithelial cells and this cell type-selective action is because of the epithelial cell-specific expression of its receptor IFNLR1. Exerts an immunomodulatory effect by up-regulating MHC class I antigen expression. | |
| Subcellular location: | Secreted. | |
| Induction: | By viral infections or double-stranded RNA. | |
| Similarity: | Belongs to the lambda interferon family. {ECO:0000305}. | |
Annotations taken from UniProtKB at the EBI.