MDC

Mouse MCD, the mouse orthologue of the human macrophagederived chemokine (MDC) /stimulated T cell chemotactic protein (STCP-1), is a CC chemokine cloned from activated mouse B cells. Mouse MDC cDNA encodes a precursor protein of 92 amino acid (aa) residues with a 24 aa residue predicted signal peptide that is cleaved to yield a 68 aa residue mature 7.8 kDa protein. At the amino acid sequence level, mouse and human MDC share 64% identity and 83% similarity. The genomic organization of the mouse and human MDC genes are very similar, exhibiting sequence identity at the intron-exon boundaries. Mouse MDC is expressed at high levels in dendritic cells and activated B lymphocytes. Low levels of mouse MDC mRNA are also detectable in lung, unstimulated spleen cells, lymph node cells and in thymocytes. MDC is a functional ligand for the CC chemokine receptor 4. Recombinant or chemically synthesized mature mouse MDC has been shown to induce chemotaxis or Ca2+ mobilization in activated mouse and human T cells.