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. 2014 Oct 1;18(5):541. doi: 10.1186/s13054-014-0541-x

Table 1.

Selected cytokines and transcription factors and their related pathways

Gene Immune pathway Contributes to anti (-) or pro (+) inflammatory phenotype a
TNFα (TNF)b Common end product of many innate and adaptive immune pathways +
IFNγ (IFNG)b Th1 effector cytokine +
IL-12 (IL12A)b Promotes differentiation to Th1 effector cells +
T-bet (TBX21)b Transcription factor utilised by Th1 cells +
IL-23 (IL23A)b Promotes differentiation to Th17 phenotype +
IL-27 (IL27)b Inhibits differentiation to Th17 phenotype -
RORγT (RORC)b Transcription factor utilised by Th17 cells +
IL-10 (IL10)b Anti-inflammatory cytokine produced by many T cell subtypes and some macrophages -
Foxp3 (FOXP3)b Transcription factor utilised by naturally occurring CD4+ CD25+ Treg cells -
GATA3 (GATA3)b Transcription factor utilised by Th2 cells -

aCytokines and transcription factors will have diverse actions under different conditions and the descriptions above are primarily for illustrative purposes and are not exhaustive; bdenotes official gene name as described by the HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC). Foxp3, forkhead box P3; GATA3, GATA-binding protein 3; IFNγ, interferon gamma; IL-12, interleukin 12; IL-23, interleukin 23; IL-27, interleukin 27; RORγt, RAR-related orphan receptor gamma T; Th1, T-helper cell type 1; Th17, T-helper cell type 17; Th2, T-helper cell type 2; TNFɑ, tumour necrosis factor alpha; Treg, T regulatory cell.