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26 sources retrieved · Most recent: April 2026 · Index updated 14 days ago
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CCL18
C-C motif chemokine ligand 18
Chromosome 17 · 17q12
NCBI Gene: 6362Ensembl: ENSG00000275385.2HGNC: HGNC:10616UniProt: P55774
161PubMed Papers
20Diseases
0Drugs
0Pathogenic Variants
RESEARCH IMPACT
Trending
DATA QUALITY
✓ Experimental GO Evidence✓ Swiss-Prot Reviewed
protein bindingcell chemotaxisantimicrobial humoral immune response mediated by antimicrobial peptidechemokine-mediated signaling pathwayoral squamous cell carcinomaneoplasmbreast cancerchronic obstructive pulmonary disease
✦AI Summary

CCL18 is a C-C motif chemokine that functions as a selective lymphocyte chemoattractant with critical roles in immune regulation and tumor biology. Primarily, CCL18 attracts naive T-lymphocytes and B-cells but not monocytes or granulocytes, facilitating their migration toward dendritic cells and activated macrophages in lymphoid tissues [UniProt]. Mechanistically, CCL18 is predominantly secreted by M2 alternatively-activated macrophages 12 as part of their anti-inflammatory cytokine profile alongside CCL17 and CCL22 3. In disease contexts, CCL18 expression correlates with immunosuppressive microenvironments across multiple malignancies. In pancreatic cancer metastasis, CCL18+ lipid-associated macrophages contribute to pro-tumor environments 4, while in gastric cancer, CCL18+ M2 macrophages interact with cancer stem cells to promote therapeutic resistance and inferior prognosis 5. Notably, CCL18+ macrophages represent terminal immunosuppressive populations that enhance tumor metastasis 6. In atopic dermatitis, elevated serum CCL18 levels correlate with disease severity, with CCL18-expressing M2 macrophages participating in leukocyte infiltration patterns 7. Clinically, lactate-stimulated macrophages upregulate CCL18 expression via H3K18 lactylation to promote ovarian cancer progression 8, suggesting CCL18 as a potential therapeutic target in cancer and inflammatory diseases.

Sources cited
1
CCL18+ lipid-associated macrophages identified as critical to pro-tumor microenvironment formation in pancreatic cancer liver metastases
PMID: 37612267
2
CCL18 expression by M2 macrophages in atopic dermatitis lesions; serum CCL18 elevated in AD patients and correlates with clinical disease severity
PMID: 37312623
3
CCL18+ cells are terminal immunosuppressive macrophages with stronger immunosuppressive function that enhance tumor metastasis
PMID: 38347955
4
CCL18 is an anti-inflammatory chemokine secreted in M2-like macrophage-dominated environments
PMID: 29921749
5
CCL18+ M2 macrophages interact with cancer stem cells in gastric cancer to promote tumorigenesis and therapeutic resistance
PMID: 39950944
6
M2 alternatively-activated macrophages secrete CCL18, CCL17, and IL-13; identified as CD11b+CD209+ cells
PMID: 25870903
7
CCL18 is characteristic anti-inflammatory mediator secreted by M2 macrophages in immunomodulatory responses
PMID: 34102486
8
Lactate activates CCL18 expression via H3K18 lactylation in macrophages; CCL18 mediates lactate-promoted ovarian cancer progression through Gpr132 pathway
PMID: 39010846
Disease Associationsⓘ20
oral squamous cell carcinomaOpen Targets
0.11Weak
neoplasmOpen Targets
0.11Weak
breast cancerOpen Targets
0.11Weak
chronic obstructive pulmonary diseaseOpen Targets
0.11Weak
rheumatoid arthritisOpen Targets
0.11Weak
glioblastoma multiformeOpen Targets
0.09Suggestive
interstitial lung diseaseOpen Targets
0.09Suggestive
ovarian cancerOpen Targets
0.09Suggestive
idiopathic pulmonary fibrosisOpen Targets
0.09Suggestive
ulcerative colitisOpen Targets
0.09Suggestive
non-small cell lung carcinomaOpen Targets
0.09Suggestive
esophageal squamous cell carcinomaOpen Targets
0.09Suggestive
head and neck squamous cell carcinomaOpen Targets
0.08Suggestive
myeloid sarcomaOpen Targets
0.08Suggestive
posterior cortical atrophyOpen Targets
0.08Suggestive
metabolic syndromeOpen Targets
0.08Suggestive
Treacher-Collins syndromeOpen Targets
0.07Suggestive
acute myocardial infarctionOpen Targets
0.07Suggestive
laryngeal squamous cell carcinomaOpen Targets
0.07Suggestive
COVID-19–associated multisystem inflammatory syndrome in adultsOpen Targets
0.07Suggestive
Pathogenic Variants
No pathogenic variants reported on ClinVar for this gene.
View on ClinVar ↗
Related Genes
CCL19Protein interaction100%PITPNM3Protein interaction100%CXCL10Protein interaction97%CXCL9Protein interaction96%CXCR4Protein interaction96%CCR5Protein interaction96%
Tissue Expression6 tissues
Lung
100%
Bone Marrow
5%
Heart
3%
Liver
1%
Brain
0%
Ovary
0%
Gene Interaction Network
Click a node to explore
CCL18CCL19PITPNM3CXCL10CXCL9CXCR4CCR5
PROTEIN STRUCTURE
Preparing viewer…
PDB4MHE · 2.10 Å · X-ray
View on RCSB ↗
Constraintⓘ
LOEUFⓘ
1.72LoF Tolerant
pLIⓘ
0.01Tolerant
Observed/Expected LoF0.94 [0.51–1.72]
RankingsWhere CCL18 stands among ~20K protein-coding genes
  • #2,784of 20,598
    Most Researched161 · top quartile
  • #16,207of 17,882
    Most Constrained (LOEUF)1.72
Genes detectedCCL18
Sources retrieved26 papers
Response time—
📄 Sources
26▼
1
Single cell transcriptomic analyses implicate an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment in pancreatic cancer liver metastasis.
PMID: 37612267
Nat Commun · 2023
1.00
2
Spatial transcriptomics combined with single-cell RNA-sequencing unravels the complex inflammatory cell network in atopic dermatitis.
PMID: 37312623
Allergy · 2023
0.90
3
Novel tumor-associated macrophage populations and subpopulations by single cell RNA sequencing.
PMID: 38347955
Front Immunol · 2023
0.80
4
Role of Human Macrophage Polarization in Inflammation during Infectious Diseases.
PMID: 29921749
Int J Mol Sci · 2018
0.70
5
Tape strips detect distinct immune and barrier profiles in atopic dermatitis and psoriasis.
PMID: 32709423
J Allergy Clin Immunol · 2021
0.68