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GeneE
50 sources retrieved Β· Most recent: April 2026 Β· Index updated 14 days ago
β“˜GeneE is for informational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
IL4
interleukin 4
Chromosome 5 Β· 5q31.1
NCBI Gene: 3565Ensembl: ENSG00000113520.11HGNC: HGNC:6014UniProt: D4HNR6
1,301PubMed Papers
21Diseases
2Drugs
0Pathogenic Variants
FUNCTIONAL ROLE
Hub Gene
RESEARCH IMPACT
Highly StudiedTrending
CLINICAL
Clinical TrialsOMIM Disease Gene
DATA QUALITY
βœ“ Experimental GO Evidenceβœ“ Swiss-Prot Reviewed
positive regulation of cell population proliferationpositive regulation of cell migrationcytokine activityprotein bindingIschemic strokeatopic eczemaseborrheic dermatitiserythematosquamous dermatosis
✦AI Summary

IL4 is a pleiotropic cytokine secreted by mast cells, T cells, eosinophils, and basophils that orchestrates immune responses through JAK-STAT signaling 1. Upon binding to IL4R, IL4 forms either a type 1 receptor complex with IL2RG (predominantly on hematopoietic cells) or a type 2 complex with IL13RA1 (on both hematopoietic and non-hematopoietic cells), both activating JAK3/JAK1 and STAT6 phosphorylation 23. IL4 drives Th2 differentiation, IgE and IgG1 class switching in B cells, and M2 macrophage polarization 4. It enhances CD23 expression on lymphocytes and monocytes, induces dendritic cell autophagy via mTORC1 interference, and plays critical roles in cognition and memory 5. Therapeutically, IL4 shows promise in sepsis management through trained immunity induction in myeloid cells 6 and cardiometabolic disease control via exosome-mediated macrophage reprogramming 7. IL4-educated macrophages demonstrate anti-inflammatory, epithelial reparative, and anticolitic functions relevant to inflammatory bowel disease treatment 8. Conversely, IL4 promotes hepatocellular carcinoma sorafenib resistance by driving macrophage extracellular trap formation via the PADI4 pathway 9. These dual roles highlight IL4's context-dependent immunomodulatory functions in health and disease.

Sources cited
1
IL4 is a cytokine secreted by mast cells, T cells, and other cells; enhances IgE and IgG1 expression
PMID: 1993171
2
IL4 regulates CD23 expression on lymphocytes and monocytes
PMID: 2521231
3
IL4 receptor dimerizes with IL2RG or IL13RA1 to form signaling complexes
PMID: 10219247
4
IL4 receptor complex formation and type 1 vs type 2 signaling mechanisms
PMID: 11526337
5
IL4 receptor complex expression patterns on hematopoietic and non-hematopoietic cells
PMID: 18243101
6
IL4 signaling leads to JAK3 and JAK1 phosphorylation and STAT6 activation
PMID: 7721895
7
IL4 induces Th2 differentiation, IgG1 and IgE class switching, and M2 macrophage activation
PMID: 29930549
8
IL4 nanotherapy resolves sepsis-induced immunoparalysis through trained immunity in myeloid cells
PMID: 37291433
9
IL4-polarized macrophage exosomes reduce cardiometabolic inflammation and improve glucose tolerance in obesity
PMID: 35292359
10
IL4 promotes hepatocellular carcinoma sorafenib resistance via PADI4-mediated macrophage extracellular trap formation
PMID: 39529192
11
IL4-educated macrophages promote epithelial wound healing and exert anticolitic effects in inflammatory bowel disease models
PMID: 39378308
Disease Associationsβ“˜21
Ischemic strokeOpen Targets
0.38Weak
atopic eczemaOpen Targets
0.30Weak
seborrheic dermatitisOpen Targets
0.27Weak
erythematosquamous dermatosisOpen Targets
0.27Weak
actinic keratosisOpen Targets
0.21Weak
MyoclonusOpen Targets
0.20Weak
Eczematoid dermatitisOpen Targets
0.18Weak
asthmaOpen Targets
0.17Weak
infectionOpen Targets
0.12Weak
neoplasmOpen Targets
0.12Weak
allergic rhinitisOpen Targets
0.11Weak
idiopathic pulmonary fibrosisOpen Targets
0.11Weak
chronic lymphocytic leukemiaOpen Targets
0.11Weak
cancerOpen Targets
0.11Weak
Townes-Brocks syndromeOpen Targets
0.11Weak
rheumatoid arthritisOpen Targets
0.11Weak
Nasal Cavity PolypOpen Targets
0.11Weak
systemic sclerodermaOpen Targets
0.11Weak
allergic diseaseOpen Targets
0.11Weak
malariaOpen Targets
0.11Weak
Ischemic strokeUniProt
Pathogenic Variants
No pathogenic variants reported on ClinVar for this gene.
View on ClinVar β†—
Drug Targets2
PASCOLIZUMABPhase II
Interleukin-4 inhibitor
asthma
ROMILKIMABPhase II
Interleukin-13 inhibitor
idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis
Related Genes
IFNAR1Protein interaction100%IFNGR1Protein interaction100%IL9RProtein interaction100%IL11RAProtein interaction100%IL20RAProtein interaction100%IFNLR1Protein interaction100%
Tissue Expression6 tissues
Bone Marrow
100%
Lung
21%
Ovary
21%
Brain
8%
Heart
0%
Liver
0%
Gene Interaction Network
Click a node to explore
IL4IFNAR1IFNGR1IL9RIL11RAIL20RAIFNLR1
PROTEIN STRUCTURE
Preparing viewer…
PDB2D48 Β· 1.65 Γ… Β· X-ray
View on RCSB β†—
Constraintβ“˜
LOEUFβ“˜
0.80LoF Tolerant
pLIβ“˜
0.34Tolerant
Observed/Expected LoF0.40 [0.22–0.80]
RankingsWhere IL4 stands among ~20K protein-coding genes
  • #107of 20,598
    Most Researched1,301 Β· top 1%
  • #6,607of 17,882
    Most Constrained (LOEUF)0.80
Genes detectedIL4
Sources retrieved50 papers
Response timeβ€”
πŸ“„ Sources
50β–Ό
1
Resolving sepsis-induced immunoparalysis via trained immunity by targeting interleukin-4 to myeloid cells.
PMID: 37291433
Nat Biomed Eng Β· 2023
1.00
2
Tuning the Cytokine Responses: An Update on Interleukin (IL)-4 and IL-13 Receptor Complexes.
PMID: 29930549
Front Immunol Β· 2018
0.90
3
The role of IL-4 in psoriasis.
PMID: 28064550
Expert Rev Clin Immunol Β· 2017
0.82
4
IL-4 polarized human macrophage exosomes control cardiometabolic inflammation and diabetes in obesity.
PMID: 35292359
Mol Ther Β· 2022
0.80
5
CCL2, CCL5, IL4 and IL15 Gene Polymorphisms in Women with Gestational Diabetes Mellitus.
PMID: 27472286
Horm Metab Res Β· 2017
0.80