The IL‐2 Receptor in Hemocytes of the Sea Mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis Lmk

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Abstract
In the hemolymph of the sea mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis, two different cell types have been found. Rounded (RH) cells display a nucleus that is very large in relation to the cell size; spread (SH) cells have an expanded cytoplasm and multiple granules. We determined by flow cytometry that only the SH cell types express three interleukin‐2 receptor (IL‐2R) subunits. Mussel IL‐2Ralpha and IL‐2Rbeta subunits display a molecular weight similar to those in vertebrates tissues, whereas mussel IL‐2Rgamma is smaller than that in vertebrates. Both lipopolysaccharide and IL‐2 induce IL‐2Ralpha expression, and such induction depends on the concentration of both agonists.