Entrez Summary: This gene is a polymorphic pseudogene which, in some humans, encodes the interferon (IFN) lambda 4 protein. Humans are polymorphic for the dinucleotide TT/deltaG allele. Compared to the ancestral state in non-human primates, the TT allele produces a frameshift in the coding region of this gene which is predicted to induce nonsense-mediated mRNA decay. This allele, and an allele in the first intron of this gene, have experienced a rapid increase in frequency and show indications of positive selection. The ancestral states of these alleles are associated with an impaired ability to clear hepatitis C virus. This gene, like other type III interferons (IFNs), interacts with the IFN lambda receptor complex (IFNLR) whose signaling is generally restricted to epithelial cells. This gene resides in a cluster of four type III IFN genes and at least two pseudogenes on chromosome 19q13.2. In general, interferons are produced in response to viral infection and block viral replication and propagation to uninfected cells by activating the JAK-STAT pathway and up-regulating antiviral genes. Multiple alternatively spliced transcripts have been described for this gene but their biological validity and protein coding status is still being ascertained. [provided by RefSeq, May 2017].
UniProt Summary: Cytokine that may trigger an antiviral response activating the JAK-STAT pathway and up-regulating specifically some interferon-stimulated genes. {ECO:0000269|PubMed:23291588}.
Pfam DomainsGO Terms
Pfam Domains
No Pfam Domain information is available for this gene.
GO Terms
tyrosine phosphorylation of STAT protein
receptor signaling pathway via JAK-STAT
receptor signaling pathway via STAT
peptidyl-tyrosine phosphorylation
peptidyl-tyrosine modification
cytokine activity
defense response to virus
response to virus
signaling receptor binding
innate immune response
positive regulation of immune response
peptidyl-amino acid modification
defense response to other organism
protein phosphorylation
immune effector process
regulation of immune response
positive regulation of immune system process
phosphorylation
response to other organism
response to external biotic stimulus
response to biotic stimulus
defense response
extracellular space
regulation of immune system process
immune response
CRISPR Data
Compound HitMost Correlated Genes in ChemogenomicsTissues where Essential in the Avana Dataset (DepMap 20Q1)
Compound Hit
No hits were found.
Most Correlated Genes in Chemogenomics
No correlation found to any other genes in chemogenomics.
Tissues where Essential in the Avana Dataset (DepMap 20Q1)
Global Fraction of Cell Lines Where Essential: N/A