TNF receptor-deficient mice reveal divergent roles for p55 and p75 in several models of inflammation.

The pleiotropic activities of the potent proinflammatory cytokine TNF are mediated by two structurally related, but functionally distinct, receptors, p55 and p75, that are coexpressed on most cell types. The majority of biologic responses classically attributed to TNF are mediated by p55. In contrast, p75 has been proposed to function as both a TNF antagonist by neutralizing TNF and as a TNF agonist by facilitating the interaction between TNF and p55 at the cell surface. We have examined the roles of p55 and p75 in mediating and modulating the activity of TNF in vivo by generating and examining mice genetically deficient in these receptors. Selective deficits in several host defense and inflammatory responses are observed in mice lacking p55 or both p55 and p75, but not in mice lacking p75. In these models, the activity of p55 is not impaired by the absence of p75, arguing against a physiologic role for p75 as an essential element of p55-mediated signaling. In contrast, exacerbated pulmonary inflammation and dramatically increased endotoxin induced serum TNF levels in mice lacking p75 suggest a dominant role for p75 in suppressing TNF-mediated inflammatory responses. In summary, these data help clarify the biologic roles of p55 and p75 in mediating and modulating the biologic activity of TNF and provide genetic evidence for an antagonistic role of p75 in vivo.