DNA ENCODING CANINE INTERLEUKIN-1 RECEPTOR ANTAGONIST

Abstract: Canine IL-1 receptor antagonist protein, DNAs, and expression vectors carrying DNA sequence encoding canine IL-1 receptor antagonist are disclosed.

Description: DNA ENCODING CANINE INTERLEUKIN- 1 RECEPTOR ANTAGONIST FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates generally to cytokine receptor antagonists, and specifically, to cDNA encoding the Interleukin- 1 receptor antagonist (IL-lra) for canine species. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Interleukin- 1 ( IL-1) type cytokines and their respective receptors have been studied with much interest over the past ten years. Additionally, other molecular entities which have effect on or in association with the IL-1 cytokines and receptors have also drawn much interest. One such molecule has been a protein receptor antagonist now termed Interleukin -1 receptor antagonist (IL-lra). IL-1B is known to be a cytokine that triggers inflammatory processes (Dinarello CA, Interleukin- 1 and Interleukin- 1 Antagonism. Blood 1991; 77: 1627-1652) The action of the receptor antagonist, IL-lra, presently appears to generate its effect by competitively blocking the ligand (IL-1) for the receptor (Dinarello CA, Interleukin- 1 and Interleukin- 1 Receptor Antagonist. Nutrition 1995; 11 : 492-494). Studies have indicated that IL-lra may have important implications for use as a therapeutic agent in the treatment against inflammatory diseases including endotoxin-induced shock, pancreatitis, mastitis, and rheumatoid arthritis (Ohlsson K, Bjork P, Bergenfeldt M, Hageman R, and Thompson R, Interleukin- 1 receptor antagonist reduces mortality from endotoxin shock. Nature 1990; 348 : 550-552; US Patent number 5508262 by Norman JG, Interleukin-I receptor antagonist decreases severity of acute pancreatitis, 1996, University of South Florida,Tampa, Fla.: USA; Shuster D and Kehrli M, Administration of recombinant human interleukin 1 receptor antagonist during endotoxin-induced mastitis in cows. American Journal of Veterinary Research 1995; 56 : 313-320; Evans CH and Robbins PD, Progress toward the Treatment of Arthritis by Gene Therapy. Annals of Medicine 1995; 27 : 543-546). Such therapeutic administration has been contemplated using the protein or its antibody via several regimens including oral, intravenous, intraperitoneal, intranasal, and subcutaneous administration. Where arthritic conditions are contemplated, direct injection into the joints is contemplated to directly administer the protein to the disease site where the ligand appears to migrate and induce the inflammatory response of the arthritic condition. Intra-synovial expression of human IL-lra in rabbits is protective against injection of human IL-1 , however, use of human IL-lra does not protect against rabbit IL-1 induced arthritis in rabbits (Hung G, Galea-Lauri J, Mueller G, Georgescu H, Larkin L, Suchanek M, Tindal M, Robbins P, and Evans C, Suppression of intra-articular responses to interleukin-I by transfer of the interleukin-1 receptor antagonist gene to synovium. Gene Therapy 1994; 1 : 64-69; Lewth waite J, Blake S, Hardingham T, Warden P, and Henderson B, The effect of recombinant human interleukin I receptor antagonist on the induction phase of antigen induced arthritis in the rabbit. Journal of Rheumatology 1994; 21 : 467-472). Human IL-lra has been tried in bovine to reduce the inflammation of mammary gland (Shuster D and Kehrli M, Administration of recombinant human interleukin 1 receptor antagonist during endotoxin-induced mastitis in cows. American Journal of Veterinary Research 1995; 56 : 313-320). However, although IL-1 bioactivity in milk was prevented, no effect of using human IL-lra was shown in the bovine model. Moreover, human IL-lra does not bind to bovine neutrophil IL-1 receptor (Lederer J and Czuprynski C, Characterization and identification of interleukin 1 receptors on bovine neutrophils. Journal of Leukocyte Biology 1992; 51 : 586-590). Therefore, there is a direct indication in the art for a need to obtain species specific receptor antagonists for use against various disease states in which use of receptor antagonist is indicated to be useful in treatment of such disease states. The IL-lra gene sequence has been identified in several species. Protein and/or DNA sequence has been disclosed for, human, mouse, rabbit, and rat (Eisenberg SP, Evans R, Arend W, Verderber E, Brewer M, Hannum C, and Thompson RC, Primary structure and functional expression from complementary DNA of a human interleukin-I receptor antagonist. Nature 1990; 343 : 341-346; Carter DB, Deibel MR, Dunn CJ, Tomich C-S, Laborde AL, Slightom JL, Berger AE, Bienkowski MJ, Sun FF, McEwan RN, Harris KW, Yem AW, Waszak GA, Chosay JG, Sieu LC, Hardee MM, Zurcher-Neely HA, Reardon IM, Heinrikson R, Truesdell S, Shelly J, Eessalu T, Taylor B, and Tracey D, Purification, cloning, expression and biological characterization of an interleukin-I receptor antagonist. Nature 1990; 344 : 633-638; Lennard A, Gorman P, Carrier M, Griffiths S, Scotney H, Sheer D, and Solari R, Cloning and Chromosome Mapping of the Human Interleukin-I Receptor Antagonist Gene. Cytokine 1992; 4 : 83-89; Matsushime H, Roussel M, Kouji M, Hishinuma A, and Sherr C, Cloning and Expression ofMurine Interleukin- 1 Receptor Antagonist in Macrophages Stimulated by Colony-Stimulating Factor I. Blood 1991 ; 78 : 616-623; Zahedi K, Uhlar C, Rits M, Prada A, and Whitehead A, The mouse interleukin I receptor antagonist protein: Gene structure and regulation in vitro. Cytokine 1994; 6 : 1-9; Goto F, Goto K, Miyata T, Ohkawara S, Takao T, Furukawa S, Maeda T, Iwanaga S, Shimonishi Y, and Yoshinaga M, Interleukin-I receptor antagonist in inflammatory exudate cells of rabbits. Production, purification and determination of primary structure. Immunology 1992; 77 : 235-244; Cominelli F, Bortolami M, Pizarro T, Monsacchi L, Ferretti M, Brewer M, Eisenberg S, and Ng R, Rabbit Interleukin-I Receptor Antagonist. J. of Biol. Chem. 1994; 269 : 6962-6971). The protein sequences of the known species are very similar as noted in Fig. 4. As shown the Table I, the highest percent homology is between rat and mouse at 90% and the lowest homology is between human and rat at 75%. In the table, D=dog, H=human, M=mouse, RB=rabbit, and R=rat. TABLE I R M H D RB R 100 M 90 100 H 75 77 100 D 74 74 80 100 RB 78 79 78 76 100 Thus, as indicated from the homologies, it is likely that species specific binding may be necessary for the canine IL-lra protein to interact with its respective receptor molecule(s) to provide effective treatment for such clinical indications as IL-1 associated arthritis. As is typically the case concerning ligand, receptor, and a receptor antagonist binding, the variation in amino acid sequence is very important to the specific binding characteristics. Moreover, in a long-term treatment, small differences between the same protein in different species may give rise to an immune response. One objective of the current invention is to alleviate the likelihood of an immune response by obtaining canine IL-lra to be used specifically in dog species. In studying the effect of IL-lra in treatment of various disease states, including arthritic conditions, canine species have been recognized as an appropriate animal model (Caron JF, Fernandes JC, Martel-Pelletier J, Tardif G, Mineau F, Geng C, Pelletier JP, Chondroprotective effect of intraarticular injections of interleukin- 1 receptor antagonist in experimental osteoarthritis. Supression of collagenase-1 expression. Arthritis and Rheumatism 1996; 39 : 1535-1544; Picvance EO, Oegema TR, Thompson RC, Immunolocalization of selected cytokines and proteases in canine articular cartilage after transarticular loading. Journal of Orthopaedic Research 1993; 1 1 : 313-323; Fernandes JC, Caron JP, Martel- Pelletier J, Jonanovic D, Mineau F, Tardif G, Otterness IG, Pelletier JP, Effects oftenidap on the progression of osteoarthritic lesions in a canine experimental model. Suppresion of metalloprotease and interleukin-I activity, Arthritis and Rheumatism 1997; 40 : 284-294). Moreover, many breeds of dog are susceptible to arthritic disease and can benefit directly from advances in the art to treat canine arthritic conditions. The current invention advances such art through obtaining canine IL-lra DNA sequence from which the protein may be produced for use in treatment of canine diseases including arthritis. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides isolated natural gene sequence encoding canine IL- lra. The invention also provides isolated canine IL-lra protein. A further embodiment of the present invention provides for DNA sequences encoding IL-lra, in particular, canine IL-lra selected from the group consisting of (a) a cDNA clone having a nucleotide sequence encoding an amino acid sequence of amino acids -25 through 151 of SEQ ID NO.:l; (b) a DNA capable of hybridization to a clone of (a) under moderately stringent conditions and which encodes a biologically active canine IL-lra molecule; and (c) a DNA having a sequence which is degenerate as a result of the genetic code to a DNA as defined in (a) or (b) above and which encodes biologically active canine IL-lra molecules. Another preferred embodiment of the invention contemplates recombinant expression vectors having the DNA sequences described above as well as the IL-lra proteins encoded therein and expressed by the expression vectors and the processes of producing said proteins from said vectors. Yet another embodiment of the invention contemplates the purification of said proteins. Still other objects of the invention include treating dogs susceptible to arthritic conditions by administration of an effective amount of the canine IL-lra protein or the DNA by gene therapy. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Fig. 1 is a single stranded nucleotide sequence depicting the cDNA retrieved from reverse transcription of canine mRNA encoding IL-lra. The figure also depicts the locations of primers and direction of sequencing used to obtain the DNA sequence as well as to clone the cDNA into an expression vector. The sequence depicted is the same as SEQ ID NO 1. Fig. 2 represents a schematic diagram of the glutathione-S-transferase (GST) fusion protein expression construct plasmid pGEX-2T. The cDNA is inserted into the plasmid via the BamHI restriction site at the 5' and an EcoRI restriction site at the 3'. Fig. 3 is a comparison of the DNA sequence of canine IL-lra with that of the rat, mouse, rabbit, and human. The sequences are depicted beginning at the 5' initiation codon ATG and terminating with the nonsense codon at the 3' end. Notations II, 12, and 13 depict locations of introns in species in which the genomic DNA sequence has been obtained. The figure further notes the location of the primers used for creating a PCR generated human sequence probe for obtaining the canine cDNA. DNA sequences for rat, mouse, rabbit and human are listed in sequence listing SEQ ID NOs 24 to 27. Fig. 4 is a comparison of the full length canine IL-lra peptide sequence with that of human, mouse, rabbit, and rat. The figure is presented in one letter amino acid code for necessity of clarity. A=Ala, N=Asn, D=Asp, R=Arg, C=Cys, Q=Gln, E=Glu, G=Gly, H=His, I=Ile, L=Leu, K=Lys, M=Met, F=Phe, P=Pro, S=Ser, T=Thr, W=Trp, Y=Tyr, V=Val. The sequences are listed in SEQ ID NOs 20 to 23. Fig. 5 is a PAGE gel showing expression of fusion peptide containing IL-lra and the purified fusion protein expression product as well as the fusion product digested with thrombin. Fig. 6 is an western blot of both the purified IL-lra fusion and cleaved proteins detected by an enhanced chemiluminescence (ECL) system. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Isolation and Identification of cDN A Sequence of canine IL-lra General Cloning Techniques: The materials and methods used to establish a cDNA library containing the cDNA sequence that encodes full length canine IL-lra are well known in the recombinant DNA art. However, a general description of the materials and methods used in the current invention is presented for clarity. Preferred embodiment for a canine cDNA library and screening thereof White blood cells were isolated from fresh dog blood by layering whole blood on an isotonic solution of Accudenz (Accurate Chemical N.Y.) 60% in HBSS buffer. The white blood cells obtained after centrifugation were plated and incubated in RPMI media 10% FBS. After 2 hours incubation at 37°C, the media was gently aspirated. Fresh media was added and the remaining adherent macrophages were incubated overnight at 37°C, 5 %CO 2 . Following overnight incubation, the cells were stimulated with LPS(20 ug/ml) in fresh media for 6 hours. RNA was extracted and purified utilizing standard guanidine thiocyanate/oligo (dT) priming protocol as described (Okayama H, Berg P, A cDNA cloning vector that permits expression ofcDNA inserts in mammalian cells. Molecular and Cellular Biology 1983; 3 : 280-289). An aliquot of the isolated oligo (dT) RNA was electrophoresed to examine the quality of the RNA. After determining the quality and quantity of the RNA, 20 ug was used to construct a cDNA library. The cDNA library cloning materials utilized that of Clontech, (Palo Alto Ca) to construct an oligo(dT) primed lambda gtl 1 library. The cDNA was blunt end ligated to adaptors which contained Eco RI restriction sites. The cDNA was then ligated to the lambda gtl 1 using Eco Rl restriction site through the adaptor. The library was screened according to standard techniques such as that described (Sambrook JF, Frisch EF, Maniatis T, Molecular cloning, a Laboratory Manual. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press. Cold Spring Harbor. 1989) using as a hybridization probe human IL-lra DNA sequence amplified by RT-PCR. The primer sequences used for creating the human probe are designated in the sequence listing by SEQ ID NO. 6 and SEQ ID NO 7. These sequences conform to the human IL-lra beginning from the mature protein codon for the 5' probe of SEQ ID NO 6 and beginning from the termination codon at the 5' end of SEQ ID NO 7. The largest clone (designated c IL-lra) as determined by agarose gel was 1.7 kb. This clone was subcloned into Ml 3 mpl8 vector via the Eco Rl restriction site and DNA sequence analysis was carried out using the Perkin-Elmer Applied Biosystem 377 Sequencer. Oligonucleotides used as sequencing primers and described in SEQ ID Nos. 8 to 17 were synthesized by Integrated DNA Technologies (Coralville, IA). Sequence data were analyzed using the University of Wisconsin Genetic Computer Group Program on a VAX DCL computer. Analysis of the cDNA IL-lra clones The cDNA obtained for full length canine IL-lra contains 1710 nucleotides and one open reading frame with 528 nucleotides. The polyadenylation signal is 1071 bases 3' to the stop codon and 13 base upstream of the poly (A) tail. The open reading frame (ORF) is preceded by 59 nucleotides of untranslated region (UTR) and is followed by a 3' UTR of 1092 nucleotides excluding the poly(A)tail. The intron organization is believed to be similar to those found in human, mouse, rat and rabbit IL-lra genes (Cominelli F, Bortolami M, Pizarro T, Monsacchi L, Ferretti M, Brewer M, Eisenberg S, and Ng R, Rabbit Interleukin- 1 Receptor Antagonist, i. of Biol. Chem. 1994; 269 : 6962-6971; Eisenberg S, Brewer M, Verderber E, Heimdal P, Brandhuber B, and Thompson R, Interleukin 1 receptor antagonist is a member of the interleukin I gene family: Evolution of a cytokine control mechanism,. Immunology 1991; 88 : 5232-5236) and described as a common organization to IL-1 family members Yiahedi K, Uhlar C, Rits M, Prada A, and Whitehead A, The mouse interleukin I receptor antagonist protein: Gene structure and regulation in vitro. Cytokine 1994; 6 : 1-9). The coding region sequence has 84% identity with the human IL-lra sequence of the same region. The short 5' untranslated region has 58% similarity and the 3' UTR has 62% of similarity as compared to the human homologous. The predicted amino acid sequence encoded by the canine IL-lra gene is very similar to the sequences of the species above mentioned having 80% identity to the human protein. Thus, the receptor antagonist family demonstrates a very high level of conservation between these sequences. The N-terminal 25 amino acids are tentatively identified as the signal peptide. The canine sequence is similar to the other species in that the sequence at the position of the purported mature protein start in the canine, beginning RPLGKR, parallels the other species having a mature protein sequence starts beginning RPSGKR (mouse and rabbit), RPSGRK (human) and HPAGKR (rat). A mature protein beginning at this position results in a molecule having 151 amino acid residues and a predicted molecular weight of 16,610 KD. Expression of Canine IL-lra protein The cDNA clone c IL-lra was amplified by PCR using primers designated in SEQ ID Nos. 18 and 19. These primers were designed to generate a 5' Bgl II restriction site for use in cloning the gene into the Bam HI site of the GST fusion protein expression vector pGEX-2T (Pharmacia), and a 3' EcoRI restriction site located downstream of the termination codon for cloning into the Eco Rl site of the expression plasmid. The PCR product which was generated using these primers comprised a 495 base pair sequence of which (1) 456 base pairs encode the IL-lra protein from the cystine at amino acid position 25 of the full length protein (nucleotide base 132), (2) the necessary amino acids glycine and serine 5' to the cystine for thrombin cleavage recognition, and (3) at the 3' end, natural sequence down stream of the termination codon into which an Eco Rl restriction site had been engineered. The fusion protein construct was then expressed in E. coli strain DH5α- using IPTG induction methodology. Fig. 5 shows a 12% Coomassie brilliant blue stained SDS-PAGE of canine IL-lra fusion and cleaved protein product. The IL-lra may be specifically cleaved from the fusion protein using thrombin according to standard techniques. Lane 1 shows cells sonicated before induction with IPTG. Lane 2 shows supernatant of cells sonicated after induction with IPTG and cell cultured for 5 hours in LB Broth (shaker culture). Lane 3 depicts a pellet of sonicated cells post IPTG induction. Lane 4 shows the fusion protein after elution from glutathione-sepharose column separation. As is clear, the protein may be isolated to substantially high purity as a fusion protein product. Lane 5 depicts flow through of glutathione-sepharose column loaded with supernatant of sonicated cells post IPTG induction. Lane 6 shows flow through of glutathione sepharose column loaded with fusion protein digested with thrombin. The free IL-lra generates a band just under 19KD. Purification of the IL-lra protein The fusion protein was purified over a Glutathione-Sepharose column (1 x 10 cm). Following column separation, the IL-lra portion was released by digestion of the fusion protein with human thrombin (1 mg/ml). As shown in Fig. 6 both the fusion protein and released IL-lra were detected on SDS-PAGE western blot using chemiluminescence technique (Pierce Rockford, IL.). The released protein may be obtained in highly pure form. Antagonist activity The western blot methodology discussed above used goat anti -human IL-lra antibody (R&D Systems Minneapolis, Mn) and shows that canine IL-lra amino acid sequence is very similar to the human protein having good immunological cross reactivity. Thus, one can expect likelihood that its metabolic activity in the dog may be similar to that of the human protein's activity in man. In vitro test blocking of IL-1 by canine IL-lra Efficacy of the canine protein was tested indirectly by observation of its effect on the blocking of IL-6 mRNA induction in the THP-1 human monocyte cell line. It is well established that IL-IB induces the production of IL-6. Administration of IL-IB to these cells will induce IL-6 message. If IL-IB is blocked by administration of IL-lra, then a drop in IL-6 message is observed as shown in table II (data in arbitrary units). TABLE II Treatment of Cells IL-6 message level IL-1 12 IL-1 /IL-lra 4 Measurements of IL-6 mRNA were carried out by harvesting total RNA from treated cells followed by electrophoresis and Northern blot. The Northern blot was then exposed to a 32P labeled IL-6 specific PCR probe by standard hybridization techniques and the image of exposed film scanned for intensity in STORM 860 Phosphor screening system. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEQUENCE LISTING SEQ ID NO:l is a nucleotide sequence showing the cDNA sequence obtained for canine IL-lra. The open reading frame (ORF) of the IL-lra protein is defined by nucleotide base number 60 to base number 587. The predicted signal peptide sequence is defined by amino acids -25 to-1. The mature peptide is defined by amino acids 1-151. SEQ ID NO: 2 is an amino acid sequence of the signal peptide of IL-lra protein. SEQ ID NO: 3 is an amino acid sequence of the mature IL-lra protein. SEQ ID NO: 4 is an amino acid sequence of the full length IL-lra protein. SEQ ID NO: 5 is an amino acid sequence of the fusion protein after cleavage with thrombin. SEQ ID NO: 6 - SEQ ID NO 7 are oligonucleotides used as human primers to construct the probe use for screening the dog cDNA library. SEQ ID NO: 8-SEQ ID NO: 17 are oligonucleotides used to sequence the full length canine cDNA. Sequences 8, 9, and 15 anneal to ml 3 and read downstream for number 8 and upstream for numbers 9 and 15. The locations for internal primers are shown on Fig. 1. SEQ ID NO: 18 - SEQ ID NO: 19 are oligonucleotides used to construct a mature canine IL-lra gene sequence by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). SEQ ID NO: 20 - SEQ ID NO: 23 are three letter code amino acid sequences for human, mouse, rabbit, and rat IL-lra. SEQ ID NO: 24 - SEQ ID NO: 27 are nucleotide sequences for human, mouse, rabbit and rat IL-lra. 0 SEQUENCE LISTING (l)GENERAL INFORMATION: (i)APPLICANTS : Fuller, Gerald M Fuentes, Nelson L. (ii)TITLE OF INVENTION: DNA Encoding Canine Interleukin- 1 Receptor Antagonist (iii)NUMBER OF SEQUENCES: 27 (iv)CORRESPONDENCE ADDRESS: (A) ADDRESSEE: Douglas C Murdock/ Bradley, Arant, Rose & White (B) STREET: 2001 Park Place, Suite 1400 (C) CITY: Birmingham (D) STATE: Alabama (E) COUNTRY: USA (F) ZIP: 35203-2736 (v)COMPUTER READABLE FORM: (A) MEDIUM TYPE: Diskette, 3.50 inch, (B) COMPUTER: IBM compatible (C) OPERATING SYSTEM: Microsoft Windows (D) SOFTWARE: WordPerfect 6.0 (vi)CURRENT APPLICATION DATA (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:l : (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 1710 base pairs (B)TYPE: nucleic acid (C) STRANDEDNESS: double (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii)MOLECULE TYPE: cDNA to mRNA (iii)HYPOTHETICAL: N (iv) ANTI-SENSE: N (v) ORIGINAL SOURCE: (A) ORGANISM: Canis familiaris (B) CELL TYPE: canine peripheral blood macrophage (C) CELL LINE: primary monocytes (vii) IMMEDIATE SOURCE: (A)LIBRARY: lambda gtl 1 cDNA (B)CLONE: Canine IL-lra (ix) FEATURE: (A) NAME/KEY: CDS (B) LOCATION: 1 to 1710 (C) OTHER INFORMATION: (ix)FEATURE: (A) NAME/KEY: open reading frame (B) LOCATION: 60 to 587 (C) OTHER INFORMATION: (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:l : ACGGCTGCGA GAAGACGACA GAAGGGGGCA GTGTCCCGTT GCCTCGCTGT 50 GGCCACCGA ATG GAA ACC TGC AGG TGT CCT CTC AGC TAC CTA 92 Met Glu Thr Cys Arg Cys Pro Leu Ser Tyr Leu -25 -20 -15 ATC TCT TTC CTC CTT TTC CTG CCC CAT TCA GAG ACA GCC TGC 134 He Ser Phe Leu Leu Phe Leu Pro His Ser Glu Thr Ala Cys -10 -5 -1 CGT CCC TTG GGG AAG AGA CCT TGC AGG ATG CAA GCC TTC AGA 176 Arg Pro Leu Gly Lys Arg Pro Cys Arg Met Gin Ala Phe Arg 1 5 10 ATC TGG GAT GTT AAC CAG AAG ACC TTC TAC CTG AGG AAT AAC 218 He Trp Asp Val Asn Gin Lys Thr Phe Tyr Leu Arg Asn Asn 15 20 25 CAA CTA GTC GCT GGA TAC TTG CAA GGA TCA AAT ACT AAA TTA 260 Gin Leu Val Ala Gly Tyr Leu Gin Gly Ser Asn Thr Lys Leu 30 35 40 GAA GAG AAG TTA GAT GTG GTG CCC GTC GAG CCT CAT GCC GTG 302 Glu Glu Lys Leu Asp Val Val Pro Val Glu Pro His Ala Val 45 50 55 TTC TTG GGG ATC CAT GGG GGG AAG CTG TGC CTG GCC TGT GTC 344 Phe Leu Gly He His Gly Gly Lys Leu Cys Leu Ala Cys Val 60 65 70 AAG TCT GGA GAT GAG ACC AGG CTC CAG CTG GAG GCC GTT AAC 386 Lys Ser Gly Asp Glu Thr Arg Leu Gin Leu Glu Ala Val Asn 75 80 ATC ACT GAC CTG AGT AAG AAC AAG GAT CAA GAC AAG CGC TTT 428 He Thr Asp Leu Ser Lys Asn Lys Asp Gin Asp Lys Arg Phe 85 90 95 ACC TTC ATC CTC TCA GAC AGT GGC CCC ACC ACC AGC TTT GAG 470 Thr Phe He Leu Ser Asp Ser Gly Pro Thr Thr Ser Phe Glu 100 105 1 10 TCT GCT GCC TGC CCT GGC TGG TTC CTC TGC ACA GCA CTG GAG 512 Ser Ala Ala Cys Pro Gly Trp Phe Leu Cys Thr Ala Leu Glu 1 15 120 125 GCC GAC CGG CCT GTC AGC CTC ACC AAC AGA CCA GAA GAG GCC 554 Ala Asp Arg Pro Val Ser Leu Thr Asn Arg Pro Glu Glu Ala 130 135 140 ATG ATG GTC ACT AAG TTC TAC TTC CAG AAG GAA TAA 590 Met Met Val Thr Lys Phe Tyr Phe Gin Lys Glu 145 150 TAGTGTGTCC ATTCCGTGCT TCCCCCCCAC TCCCAACACA TCAATGACTC 640 CAGAGATGCC TCTCCATTCT GCCTGGGGTC TCCTGGCTGT GGTGGAGGCT 690 CTGAGGAGCA GCCTCGGTGG GGTGGACCCT CAGAAGGATG TATGAGAGCC 740 CTGGTAACGG GACCCTGCCT CCAGCCTCCT CAGCTAGCCA ACCTCAATGC 790 TGCCACCACA GTGGTCTTTC TAAAGTGCAC CTCTAGCTGC AGCACTGCTC 840 CAGGCCTTTC AGGGCTGCCT CTGCCTTCTG GATTAAAGCC AGGCTGCTTG 890 GCCAGCCTGG CCCCCTGCTC TCCTCTCCGT AACTCCTTGC TCTCCTCCCT 940 TGCCCCATGT CCATGTCCTG GATCCCTCCT GCCCCTTTGC TGGCCTCCCA 990 AACCTTGTGT TTTGCAAACC GATGCTGTTC TGTGGGGAAA CCTTAGAGTC 1040 TGTGCCAAGA TGGCCGCTAA GGATTTCAAC TTGGCTTTCC TTTGAAGCCA 1090 ATTTCATCCA GTTTCAAGGG AGAGTCCTTT ATTTAGACAC TATGTCCATT 1 140 CTGGAAAAGT GTGGGCAAGG ATGAAAAGTA GCTCTCCCTT TTGATTTCTC 1 190 TTATTTTTGA ACGTCCTGAC CTGCAAAAAT GACAAGTTAG TGTGTTATGT 1240 TGGTCTCTAC TTTTTTTCTT TCTGTGATGT TCCTAAAGCC TGGCCCCACT 1290 GCTCCAGCGA GGTACCATTT CCACTCCAGG CCTTTGACAG CCACCTGCAG 1340 TGCTTGTCCT CCCCATCTCT CCCATCAAAA CTCCCAGCTG CAGGCCAGGG 1390 CATCAATGTG GCTCCACTGT TCCTGGGAGG GAGGAATTAC TCTCGGACCA 1440 TTTTACACTT CTGACACTCT GAGACTTGTT TGAAAGGTTG TGTCTCTGTC 1490 TGTCTCCCAC ACCAGACTGT GAGTTCCCAA GAGAAGGGAG CATGACCTCT 1540 GTGTTTTGGG GCTCCCGCAG GGCTGAGCAC ACAGCTCCGG CCCTTAGCAC 1590 GTGCTCACTG AATGTGTGTT GTATGTGTTG AGTAGAAAGG TTTTTACTTT 1640 TTGTGAATTA AGGTTTGTTT TACAATAAAA TTTTAAAAAT TCAAAAAAAA 1690 AAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAA 1710 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:2: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A)LENGTH: 25 amino acids (B)TYPE: amino acid (D)TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: signal peptide (xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:2: Met Glu Thr Cys Arg Cys Pro Leu Ser Tyr Leu -25 -20 -15 He Ser Phe Leu Leu Phe Leu Pro His Ser Glu Thr Ala Cys -10 -5 -1 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:3: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A)LENGTH: 151 amino acids (B)TYPE: amino acid (D)TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: mature peptide (xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:3: Arg Pro Leu Gly Lys Arg Pro Cys Arg Met Gin Ala Phe Arg 1 5 10 He Tφ Asp Val Asn Gin Lys Thr Phe Tyr Leu Arg Asn Asn 15 20 25 Gin Leu Val Ala Gly Tyr Leu Gin Gly Ser Asn Thr Lys Leu 30 35 40 Glu Glu Lys Leu Asp Val Val Pro Val Glu Pro His Ala Val 45 50 55 Phe Leu Gly He His Gly Gly Lys Leu Cys Leu Ala Cys Val 60 65 70 Lys Ser Gly Asp Glu Thr Arg Leu Gin Leu Glu Ala Val Asn 75 80 He Thr Asp Leu Ser Lys Asn Lys Asp Gin Asp Lys Arg Phe 85 90 95 Thr Phe He Leu Ser Asp Ser Gly Pro Thr Thr Ser Phe Glu 100 105 110 Ser Ala Ala Cys Pro Gly Tφ Phe Leu Cys Thr Ala Leu Glu 115 120 125 Ala Asp Arg Pro Val Ser Leu Thr Asn Arg Pro Glu Glu Ala 130 135 140 Met Met Val Thr Lys Phe Tyr Phe Gin Lys Glu 145 150 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:4: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A)LENGTH: 176 amino acids (B)TYPE: amino acid (D)TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: IL-lra full length peptide (xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:4: Met Glu Thr Cys Arg Cys Pro Leu Ser Tyr Leu -25 -20 -15 He Ser Phe Leu Leu Phe Leu Pro His Ser Glu Thr Ala Cys -10 -5 -1 Arg Pro Leu Gly Lys Arg Pro Cys Arg Met Gin Ala Phe Arg 1 5 10 He Tφ Asp Val Asn Gin Lys Thr Phe Tyr Leu Arg Asn Asn 15 20 25 Gin Leu Val Ala Gly Tyr Leu Gin Gly Ser Asn Thr Lys Leu 30 35 40 Glu Glu Lys Leu Asp Val Val Pro Val Glu Pro His Ala Val 45 50 55 Phe Leu Gly He His Gly Gly Lys Leu Cys Leu Ala Cys Val 60 65 70 Lys Ser Gly Asp Glu Thr Arg Leu Gin Leu Glu Ala Val Asn 75 80 He Thr Asp Leu Ser Lys Asn Lys Asp Gin Asp Lys Arg Phe 85 90 95 Thr Phe He Leu Ser Asp Ser Gly Pro Thr Thr Ser Phe Glu 100 105 110 Ser Ala Ala Cys Pro Gly Tφ Phe Leu Cys Thr Ala Leu Glu 115 120 125 Ala Asp Arg Pro Val Ser Leu Thr Asn Arg Pro Glu Glu Ala 130 135 140 Met Met Val Thr Lys Phe Tyr Phe Gin Lys Glu 145 150 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:5: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A)LENGTH: 154 amino acids (B)TYPE: amino acid (D)TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: cleaved IL-lra peptide from fusion construct (xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:5: Gly Ser Cys Arg Pro Leu Gly Lys Arg Pro Cys Arg Met Gin Ala 1 5 10 15 Phe Arg He Tφ Asp Val Asn Gin Lys Thr Phe Tyr Leu Arg Asn 20 25 30 Asn Gin Leu Val Ala Gly Tyr Leu Gin Gly Ser Asn Thr Lys Leu 35 40 45 Glu Glu Lys Leu Asp Val Val Pro Val Glu Pro His Ala Val Phe 50 55 60 Leu Gly He His Gly Gly Lys Leu Cys Leu Ala Cys Val Lys Ser 65 70 75 Gly Asp Glu Thr Arg Leu Gin Leu Glu Ala Val Asn He Thr Asp 80 85 90 Leu Ser Lys Asn Lys Asp Gin Asp Lys Arg Phe Thr Phe He Leu 95 100 105 Ser Asp Ser Gly Pro Thr Thr Ser Phe Glu Ser Ala Ala Cys Pro 110 115 120 Gly Tφ Phe Leu Cys Thr Ala Leu Glu Ala Asp Arg Pro Val Ser 125 130 135 Leu Thr Asn Arg Pro Glu Glu Ala Met Met Val Thr Lys Phe Tyr 140 145 150 Phe Gin Lys Glu 154 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:6: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A)LENGTH:33 base pairs (B)TYPE: nucleic acid (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D)TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: oligonucleotide (xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:6: CCCTCTGGGA GAAAATCCAG CAAGATGCAA GCC 33 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:7: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH 24 base pairs (B) TYPE: nucleic acid (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii)MOLECULE TYPE: oligonucleotide (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:7: CTACTCGTCC TCCTGGAAGT AGAA 24 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO: 8: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 17 base pairs (B) TYPE: nucleic acid (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: oligonucleotide (xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:8: GTAAAACGAC GGCCAGT 17 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:9: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 16 base pairs (B) TYPE: nucleic acid (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE:oligonucleotide (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:9: AACAGCTATG ACCATG 16 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO: 10: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 23 basepairs (B) TYPE: nucleic acid (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: oligonucleotide (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO: 10: CAGCCTCGGT GGGGTGGACC CTC 23 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:l 1 : (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 23 base pairs (B) TYPE: nucleic acid (B) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: oligonucleotide (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:l 1 : TTGATGGGAG AGTGGGGGGA GGA 23 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO: 12: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 24 base pairs (B) TYPE: nucleic acid (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii)MOLECULE TYPE: oligonucleotide (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO: 12 TCTGGGATGT TAACCAGAAG ACCT 24 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO: 13: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 24 base pairs (B) TYPE: nucleic acid (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii)MOLECULE TYPE: oligonucleotide (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO: 13 ACTCAACACA TACAACACAC ATTC 24 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO: 14: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 24 base pairs (B) TYPE: nucleic acid (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: oligonucleotide (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO: 14 CTCAGACAGT GGCCCCACCA CCAG 24 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO: 15: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 24 basepairs (B) TYPE: nucleic acid (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: oligonucleotide (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO: 15 TTCATTCAGC TCCGGGGTAC CGAG 24 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO: 16: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 24 basepairs (B) TYPE: oligonucleotide (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: oligonucleotide (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO: 16 GAGATGAGAC CAGGCTCCAG CTGG 24 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:17: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 24 base pairs (B) TYPE: nucleic acid (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: oligonucleotide (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO: 17 GCCGACCGGC CTGTCAGCCT CACC 24 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO: 18: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 35 base pairs (B) TYPE: nucleic acid (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: oligonucleotide (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO: 18 GAGAGATCTT GCCGTCCCTT GGGGAAGAGA CCTTG 35 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO: 19: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 33 base pairs (B) TYPE: nucleic acid (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: oligonucleotide (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO: 19 GGGGGGGAAT TCCGGAATGG ACACACTATT ATT 33 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:20: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 177 amino acids (B) TYPE: protein (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: human IL-lra sequence (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO: 20 Met Glu He Cys Arg Gly Leu Arg Ser His Leu He Thr Leu Leu 1 5 10 15 Leu Phe Leu Phe His Ser Glu Thr He Cys Arg Pro Ser Gly Arg 20 25 30 Lys Ser Ser Lys Met Gin Ala Phe Arg He Tφ Asp Val Asn Gin 35 40 45 Lys Thr Phe Tyr Leu Arg Asn Asn Gin Leu Val Ala Gly Tyr Leu 50 55 60 Gin Gly Pro Asn Val Asn Leu Glu Glu Lys He Asp Val Val Pro 65 70 75 He Glu Pro His Ala Leu Phe Leu Gly He His Gly Gly Lys Met 80 85 90 Cys Leu Ser Cys Val Lys Ser Gly Asp Glu Thr Arg Leu Gin Leu 95 100 105 Glu Ala Val Asn He Thr Asp Leu Ser Glu Asn Arg Lys Gin Asp 110 115 120 Lys Arg Phe Ala Phe He Arg Ser Asp Ser Gly Pro Thr Thr Ser 125 130 135 Phe Glu Ser Ala Ala Cys Pro Gly Trp Phe Leu Cys Thr Ala Met 140 145 150 Glu Ala Asp Gin Pro Val Ser Leu Thr Asn Met Pro Asp Glu Gly 155 160 165 Val Met Val Thr Lys Phe Tyr Phe Gin Glu Asp Glu 170 175 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:21 : (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 178 amino acids (B) TYPE: protein (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: mouse IL-lra sequence (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:21 Met Glu He Cys Tφ Gly Pro Tyr Ser His Leu He Ser Leu Leu 1 5 10 15 Leu He Leu Leu Phe His Ser Glu Ala Ala Cys Arg Pro Ser Gly 20 25 30 Lys Arg Pro Cys Lys Met Gin Ala Phe Arg He Tφ Asp Thr Asn 35 40 45 Gin Lys Thr Phe Tyr Leu Arg Asn Asn Gin Leu He Ala Gly Tyr 50 55 60 Leu Gin Gly Pro Asn He Lys Leu Glu Gly Lys He Asp Met Val 65 70 75 Pro He Asp Leu His Ser Val Phe Leu Gly He His Gly Gly Lys 80 85 90 Leu Cys Leu Ser Cys Ala Lys Ser Gly Asp Asp He Lys Leu Gin 95 100 105 Leu Glu Glu Val Asn He Thr Asp Leu Ser Lys Asn Lys Glu Glu 110 115 120 Asp Lys Arg Phe Thr Phe He Arg Ser Glu Lys Gly Pro Thr Thr 125 130 135 Ser Phe Glu Ser Ala Ala Cys Pro Gly Trp Phe Leu Cys Thr Thr 140 145 150 Leu Glu Ala Asp Arg Pro Val Ser Leu Thr Asn Thr Pro Glu Glu 155 160 165 Pro Leu He Val Thr Lys Phe Tyr Phe Gin Glu Asp Gin 170 175 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:22: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 177 amino acids (B) TYPE: protein (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: rabbit IL-lra sequence (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:22 Met Arg Pro Ser Arg Ser Thr Arg Arg His Leu He Ser Leu Leu 1 5 10 15 Leu Phe Leu Phe His Ser Glu Thr Ala Cys Arg Pro Ser Gly Lys 20 25 30 Arg Pro Cys Arg Met Gin Ala Phe Arg He Tφ Asp Val Asn Gin 35 40 45 Lys Thr Phe Tyr Leu Arg Asn Asn Gin Leu Val Ala Gly Tyr Leu 50 55 60 Gin Gly Pro Asn Ala Lys Leu Glu Glu Arg He Asp Val Val Pro 65 70 75 Leu Glu Pro Gin Leu Leu Phe Leu Gly He Gin Arg Gly Lys Leu 80 85 90 Cys Leu Ser Cys Val Lys Ser Gly Asp Lys Met Lys Leu His Leu 95 100 105 Glu Ala Val Asn He Thr Asp Leu Gly Lys Asn Lys Glu Gin Asp 110 115 120 Lys Arg Phe Thr Phe He Arg Ser Asn Ser Gly Pro Thr Thr Thr 125 130 135 Phe Glu Ser Ala Ser Cys Pro Gly Tφ Phe Leu Cys Thr Ala Leu 140 145 150 Glu Ala Asp Gin Pro Val Ser Leu Thr Asn Thr Pro Asp Asp Ser 155 160 165 He Val Val Thr Lys Phe Tyr Phe Gin Glu Asp Gin 170 175 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:23: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 178 amino acids (B) TYPE: protein (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: rat IL-lra sequence (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:23 Met Glu He Cys Arg Gly Pro Tyr Ser His Leu He Ser Leu Leu 1 5 10 15 Leu He Leu Leu Phe Arg Ser Glu Ser Ala Gly His Pro Ala Gly 20 25 30 Lys Arg Pro Cys Lys Met Gin Ala Phe Arg He Tφ Asp Thr Asn 35 40 45 Gin Lys Thr Phe Tyr Leu Arg Asn Asn Gin Leu He Ala Gly Tyr 50 55 60 Leu Gin Gly Pro Asn Thr Lys Leu Glu Glu Lys He Asp Met Val 65 70 75 Pro He Asp Phe Arg Asn Val Phe Leu Gly He His Gly Gly Lys 80 85 90 Leu Cys Leu Ser Cys Val Lys Ser Gly Asp Asp Thr Lys Leu Gin 95 100 105 Leu Glu Glu Val Asn He Thr Asp Leu Asn Lys Asn Lys Glu Glu 110 115 120 Asp Lys Arg Phe Thr Phe He Arg Ser Glu Thr Gly Pro Thr Thr 125 130 135 Ser Phe Glu Ser Leu Ala Cys Pro Gly Tφ Phe Leu Cys Thr Thr 140 145 150 Leu Glu Ala Asp His Pro Val Ser Leu Thr Asn Thr Pro Lys Glu 155 160 165 Pro Cys Thr Val Thr Lys Phe Tyr Phe Gin Glu Asp Gin 170 175 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:24: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 534 base pairs (B) TYPE: nucleic acid (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: human IL-lra DNA sequence (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:24 ATGGAAATCT GCAGAGGCCT CCGCAGTCAC CTAATCACTC 40 TCCTCCTCTT CCTGTTCCAT TCAGAGACGA TCTGCCGACC 80 CTCTGGGAGA AAATCCAGCA AGATGCAAGC CTTCAGAATC 120 TGGGATGTTA ACCAGAAGAC CTTCTATCTG AGGAACAACC 160 AACTAGTTGC TGGATACTTG CAAGGACCAA ATGTCAATTT 200 AGAAGAAAAG ATAGATGTGG TACCCATTGA GCCTCATGCT 240 CTGTTCTTGG GAATCCATGG AGGGAAGATG TGCCTGTCCT 280 GTGTCAAGTC TGGTGATGAG ACCAGACTCC AGCTGGAGGC 320 AGTTAACATC ACTGACCTGA GCGAGAACAG AAAGCAGGAC 360 AAGCGCTTCG CCTTCATCCG CTCAGACAGT GGCCCCACCA 400 CCAGTTTTGA GTCTGCCGCC TGCCCCGGTT GGTTCCTCTG 440 CACAGCGATG GAAGCTGACC AGCCCGTCAG CCTCACCAAT 480 ATGCCTGACG AAGGCGTCAT GGTCACCAAA TTCTACTTCC 520 AGGAGGACGA GTAG 534 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:25: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 537 base pairs (B) TYPE: nucleic acid (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: mouse IL-lra DNA sequence (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:25 ATGGAAATCT GCTGGGGACC CTACAGTCAC CTAATCTCTC 40 TCCTTCTCAT CCTTCTGTTT CATTCAGAGG CAGCCTGCCG 80 CCCTTCTGGG AAAAGACCCT GCAAGATGCA AGCCTTCAGA 120 ATCTGGGATA CTAACCAGAA GACCTTTTAC CTGAGAAACA 160 ACCAGCTCAT TGCTGGGTAC TTACAAGGAC CAAATATCAA 200 ACTAGAAGAA AAGATAGACA TGGTGCCTAT TGACCTTCAT 240 AGTGTGTTCT TGGGCATCCA CGGGGGCAAG CTGTGCCTGT 280 CTTGTGCCAA GTCTGGAGAT GATATCAAGC TCCAGCTGGA 320 GGAAGTTAAC ATCACTGATC TGAGCAAGAA CAAAGAAGAA 360 GACAAGCGCT TTACCTTCAT CCGCTCTGAG AAAGGCCCCA 400 CCACCAGCTT TGAGTCAGCT GCCTGTCCAG GATGGTTCCT 440 CTGCACAACA CTAGAGGCTG ACCGTCCTGT GAGCCTCACC 480 AACACACCGG AAGAGCCCCT TATAGTCACG AAGTTCTACT 520 TCCAGGAAGA CCAATAG 537 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:26: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 534 base pairs (B) TYPE: nucleic acid (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: rabbit IL-lra DNA sequence (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:26 ATGAGACCCT CCAGGAGCAC CCGCAGGCAC CTAATCTCCC 40 TCCTCCTCTT CCTGTTCCAT TCAGAGACAG CCTGCCGCCC 80 TTCTGGGAAA AGACCTTGCA GGATGCAGGC CTTCAGAATC 120 TGGGATGTTA ACCAGAAGAC CTTCTACTTG AGAAACAACC 160 AACTAGTCGC TGGTTACTTG CAAGGCCCAA ATGCCAAATT 200 AGAAGAAAGG ATAGATGTGG TGCCCCTTGA GCCTCAGCTC 240 CTGTTCCTGG GCATCCAGAG GGGGAAGTTG TGCCTGTCTT 280 GTGTGAAGTC TGGGGATAAG ATGAAGCTCC ATTTGGAGGC 320 CGTTAACATC ACTGACCTGG GCAAGAACAA GGAGCAGGAC 360 AAGCGCTTCA CCTTCATCCG CTCCAATAGT GGCCCTACCA 400 CCACCTTCGA GTCTGCCTCC TGCCCGGGCT GGTTTCTCTG 440 CACGGCCCTG GAGGCTGACC AGCCGGTCAG CCTCACCAAC 480 ACCCCGGACG ACTCCATCGT GGTCACCAAG TTCTACTTCC 520 AGGAGGACCA GTAG 534 (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:27: (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS: (A) LENGTH: 537 base pairs (B) TYPE: nucleic acid (C) STRANDEDNESS: single (D) TOPOLOGY: linear (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: rat IL-lra DNA sequence (xi)SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:27 ATGGAAATCT GCAGGGGACC TTACAGTCAC CTAATCTCTC 40 TCCTTCTCAT CCTTCTGTTT CGTTCAGAGT CAGCTGGCCA 80 CCCTGCTGGG AAAAGACCCT GCAAGATGCA AGCCTTCAGA 120 ATCTGGGATA CTAACCAGAA GACCTTCTAC CTGAGGAACA 160 ACCAGCTCAT TGCTGGGTAC TTACAAGGAC CAAATACCAA 200 ACTAGAAGAA AAGATAGACA TGGTGCCTAT TGACTTTCGG 240 AATGTGTTCT TGGGCATCCA CGGGGGCAAG CTGTGCCTGT 280 CTTGTGTCAA GTCTGGAGAT GACACCAAGC TCCAGCTGGA 320 GGAGGTTAAC ATCACTGATC TGAACAAGAA CAAAGAAGAA 360 GACAAGCGCT TTACCTTCAT CCGCTCCGAG ACAGGCCCTA 400 CCACCAGCTT CGAATCACTT GCCTGTCCAG GATGGTTCCT 440 CTGCACAACA CTAGAGGCTG ATCATCCCGT GAGCCTCACC 480 AACACACCAA AAGAGCCCTG TACAGTCACA AAGTTCTACT 520 TCCAGGAAGA CCAATAG 537 All prior art papers disclosed herein are hereby incoφorated by reference. Modifications and other embodiments of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art to which this invention relates having the benefit of the foregoing teachings, descriptions, and associated drawings. The present invention is therefore not to be limited to the specific embodiments disclosed but is to include modifications and other embodiments which are within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims: What is claimed is: 1. An isolated DNA selected from the group consisting of: (a) a cDNA clone having a nucleotide sequence encoding an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of amino acids 1 through 151 encoded by SEQ ID NO..1, amino acids -25 through 151 encoded by SEQ ID NO..1, and amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO 5 of which all but the first two amino acids of SEQ ID NO 5 are encoded by a DNA sequence of SEQ ID NO 1 while the first two amino acids are respectively glycine and serine; (b) a DNA capable of hybridization to a clone of (a) under moderately stringent conditions and which encodes a biologically active canine IL-lra molecule; and (c) a DNA having a sequence which is degenerate as a result of the genetic code to a DNA as defined in (a) or (b) above and which encodes biologically active canine IL-lra molecules. 2. An isolated DNA according to claim 1 which encodes a soluble canine IL-lra. 3. An isolated DNA according to claim 1 wherein said DNA is expressed by a recombinant DNA expression vector. 4. An isolated DNA according to claim 2 wherein said DNA is expressed by a recombinant DNA expression vector. 5. A DNA according to claim 3 wherein said vector is pGEX-2T. 6. A DNA according to claim 4 wherein said vector is pGEX-2T. 7. An isolated DNA having a nucleotide sequence encoding an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of amino acids 1 through 151 encoded by SEQ ID NO. : 1 , amino acids -25 through 151 encoded by SEQ ID NO. : 1 , and amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO 5 of which all but the first two amino acids of SEQ ID NO 5 are encoded by a DNA sequence of SEQ ID NO 1 while the first two amino acids are respectively glycine and serine. 8. An isolated DNA according to claim 7 which encodes a soluble canine IL-lra. 9. A DNA according to claim 7 wherein said DNA is expressed by a procaryotic expression vector. 10. A DNA according to claim 8 wherein said DNA is expressed by a procaryotic expression vector. 11. A DNA according to claim 9 wherein said vector is pGEX-2T. 12. A DNA according to claim 10 wherein said vector is pGEX-2T. 13. A substantially pure and homogeneous soluble protein comprising the amino acid sequence of canine IL-lra selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO 3, SEQ ID NO 4, and SEQ ID NO 5.

Inventors: FUENTES NELSON LUIS, FULLER GERALD MAXWELL, FUENTES, NELSON, LUIS, FULLER, GERALD, MAXWELL
Applicants: UAB RESEARCH FOUNDATION
Application year: 1998
Main classification: C12N15
IPC codes: A61K38, C07K14, C12N15