| abstract |
Two kinds of antibody antagonists against binding of human IL-4 to cellular receptors are described. Some of the antagonists bind to specific regions of IL-4 which appear to be involved in the interactions between IL-4 and its receptors. Thanks to this specific binding of antibodies to IL-4, the binding of IL-4 to receptors is very considerably inhibited. The other antibody antagonists of the invention are anti-idiotypic and, while lacking IL-4 activity, appear to mimic IL-4 and be its direct competitors for binding to cellular receptors. Also described are the polypeptides used to produce the antibody antagonists, as well as methods of using the antagonists to inhibit the binding of IL-4 to its cellular receptors. |