| abstract |
The present invention provides serum immunoregulatory polypeptides (SIPs) not previously isolated, the molecular weight of which is approximately between 14,000 and 31,000. SIPs can be obtained from mammalian hemorrhagic serum. They activate suppressive T cells and suppress the proliferation of lymphocytes as well as the production of interleukin. There is significant homology between SIPs of different mammalian species. SIPs have far-reaching implications in allograft and transplantation cases where suppression of the immune response and / or the initiation of tolerance is desirable, as well as in the treatment of autoimmune diseases. |