Tissue-specific targeting of gytokine unresponsiveness in transgenic mice

The ubiquitous cellular distribution of certain cytokine receptors has hampered attempts to define the physiologically important cell-specific functions of cytokines in vivo. Herein, we report the generation of transgenic mice that express a dominant-negative IFNγ receptor α chain mutant under the control of either the human lysozyme promoter or the murine Ick proximal promoter, which display tissue-specific unresponsiveness in the macrophage or T cell compartments, respectively, to the pleiotropic cytokine, IFNγ. We utilize these mice to identify previously undefined cellular targets of IFNγ action in the development of a murine antimicrobial response and the mixed lymphocyte reaction. Moreover, we identify the macrophage as a critical responsive cell in manifesting the effects of IFNγ in regulating CD4⁺ T helper subset development. These studies thus represent a novel approach to studying the cell-specific actions of an endogenously produced pleiotropic cytokine in vivo.