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Abstract
Cytokines are pleiotropic molecules showing a wide variety of biological functions on various cells and tissues. Several different cytokines exert similar and overlapping functions on certain cells. Interferons (IFNs) play a crucial role in human disease and consist of type I IFNs (IFN-α and IFN-β) and type II IFN (IFN-γ). The importance of type I IFNs in inflammation, immunoregulation and T cell responses has been recognised, and dendritic cells have recently been identified as the major source of type I IFNs. Type I IFNs are multifunctional immunomodulatory cytokines with profound effects on the cytokine cascade, including several anti-inflammatory properties. They favour both the induction of T helper (Th) 1 cytokines as well as the suppression of Th2 cytokines such as IL-13. Therefore, it is not unexpected that type I IFNs show promising clinical effects in Th2-dominated diseases such as ulcerative colitis and allergic asthma. These newly identified immunoregulatory and anti-inflammatory functions of type I IFNs may be of importance in the treatment of various chronic inflammatory disorders.