Interleukin-27 and interleukin-12 augment activation of distinct cord blood natural killer cells responses via STAT3 pathways.

Background/purpose: Umbilical cord blood is rich in primitive natural killer (NK) cells, which are activated by interleukin (IL)-12. It was previously reported that a novel IL-12 family cytokine, IL-27 comprised of EBI3 and p28, was elevated in maternal serum during normal pregnancy. Thus, we compared the immune regulatory functions of IL-27 and IL-12 on mononuclear cells derived from cord blood and adult peripheral blood.