IL-10 acts as an antagonist to which cytokine?

IL-10 acts as an antagonist to which cytokine?

• A. IL-4
• B. TNF-α
• C. IFN-γ
• D. TGF-β

Answer: (C)

IL-10 dampens Th1-driven inflammation by suppressing IFN-γ production and action. It acts as a potent anti-inflammatory cytokine by inhibiting antigen-presenting cells from making IL-12, which reduces differentiation of naive T cells into Th1 cells and lowers IFN-γ production. It also blunts macrophage responsiveness to IFN-γ, limiting the downstream activation that IFN-γ normally drives. Because of this central effect on the Th1 axis, IFN-γ is the cytokine most clearly antagonized by IL-10. While IL-10 can also reduce other proinflammatory mediators like TNF-α, the defining interaction in this context is against IFN-γ.

IL-10 dampens Th1-driven inflammation by suppressing IFN-γ production and action. It acts as a potent anti-inflammatory cytokine by inhibiting antigen-presenting cells from making IL-12, which reduces differentiation of naive T cells into Th1 cells and lowers IFN-γ production. It also blunts macrophage responsiveness to IFN-γ, limiting the downstream activation that IFN-γ normally drives. Because of this central effect on the Th1 axis, IFN-γ is the cytokine most clearly antagonized by IL-10. While IL-10 can also reduce other proinflammatory mediators like TNF-α, the defining interaction in this context is against IFN-γ.