Systems cues governing IL6 signaling in leishmaniasis

Abstract

IL-6 has been proposed to favor the development of Th2 responses and play an important role in the communication between cells of multicellular organisms. They are involved in the regulation of complex cellular processes such as proliferation, differentiation and act as key player during inflammation and immune response. Th2 cytokines play an immunoregulatory role in early infection. Literature says in mice infected with L. major, IL-6 may promote the development of both Th1 and Th2 responses. IL-4 is also considered to be the signature cytokine of Th-2 response. IL-10 was initially characterized as a Th2 cytokine but later on it was proved to be a pleiotropic cytokine, secreted from different cell types including the macrophages. A major challenge is to understand how these complex non-linear processes are connected and regulated. Systems biology approaches may be used to tackle this challenge in an iterative process of quantitative mathematical analysis. In this study, we created an in silico model of IL6 mediated macrophage activation which suffers from an excessive impact of the negative feedback loop involving SOCS3. The strategy adopted in this framework may help to reduce the complexity of the leishmanial IL6 model analysis and also laydown various physiological or pathological conditions of IL6 signaling in future.