Polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid, sodium salt
Clinical data
ATC code
Identifiers
  • poly[(2R,3S,4R,5R)-5-(4-amino-2-oxopyrimidin-1-yl)-3,4-dihydroxyoxolan-2-yl]methyl dihydrogen phosphate;
CAS Number
PubChem CID
ChemSpider
  • none
UNII
CompTox Dashboard (EPA)
Chemical and physical data
Formula(C10H10N4NaO7P)x • (C9H11N3NaO7P)x
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Polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid (usually abbreviated poly I:C or poly(I:C)) is an immunostimulant. It is used in the form of its sodium salt to simulate viral infections.[1]

Poly I:C is known to interact with toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3), which is expressed at the endosomal membrane of B-cells, macrophages and dendritic cells. Poly I:C is structurally similar to double-stranded RNA, which is present in some viruses and is a "natural" stimulant of TLR3. Thus, Poly I:C can be considered a synthetic analog of double-stranded RNA and is a common tool for scientific research on the immune system.[2]

Poly I:C has been shown to activate schizophrenia-like behavior in the offspring of pregnant mice, which can be accompanied by decreased GABAergic transmission in the dentate gyrus.[3]

Chemistry

Poly I:C is a mismatched double-stranded RNA with one strand being a polymer of inosinic acid, the other a polymer of cytidylic acid.

Variants

Optimization of physicochemical properties of poly I:C has led to generation of derivatives that have increased stability in body fluids (such as polyICLC), or reduced toxicity through reduced stability in body fluids (such as poly I:C12U).[4]

References

  1. ^ Fortier ME, Kent S, Ashdown H, Poole S, Boksa P, Luheshi GN (October 2004). "The viral mimic, polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid, induces fever in rats via an interleukin-1-dependent mechanism". American Journal of Physiology. Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology. 287 (4): R759–R766. doi:10.1152/ajpregu.00293.2004. PMID 15205185. S2CID 24028101.
  2. ^ Li Y, Xu XL, Zhao D, Pan LN, Huang CW, Guo LJ, et al. (November 2015). "TLR3 ligand Poly IC Attenuates Reactive Astrogliosis and Improves Recovery of Rats after Focal Cerebral Ischemia". CNS Neuroscience & Therapeutics. 21 (11): 905–913. doi:10.1111/cns.12469. PMC 4638223. PMID 26494128.
  3. ^ Xia Y, Zhang Z, Lin W, Yan J, Zhu C, Yin D, et al. (October 2020). "Modulating microglia activation prevents maternal immune activation induced schizophrenia-relevant behavior phenotypes via arginase 1 in the dentate gyrus". Neuropsychopharmacology. 45 (11): 1896–1908. doi:10.1038/s41386-020-0743-7. PMC 7608378. PMID 32599605.
  4. ^ Naumann K, Wehner R, Schwarze A, Petzold C, Schmitz M, Rohayem J (2013-12-02). "Activation of dendritic cells by the novel Toll-like receptor 3 agonist RGC100". Clinical & Developmental Immunology. 2013: 283649. doi:10.1155/2013/283649. PMC 3878805. PMID 24454470.
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