C/EBPβ is required for the late phases of acute phase genes induction in the liver and for tumour necrosis factor-α, but not interleukin-6, regulation

C/EBPβ is a leucine-zipper transcription factor believed to play an important role in the control of liver functions, and in particular in the transcriptional regulation of acute phase genes in response to several inflammatory stimuli and to recombinant cytokines. Moreover, this factor has been proposed as an important activator of several cytokine genes. We recently described the generation of mice in which the C/EBPβ gene has been inactivated by gene targeting, showing that they are viable, but present specific defects in the myeloid and lymphoid compartments. Here we demonstrate that C/EBPβ does indeed play a role in the transcriptional induction of some, but not all, liver acute phase genes. Activation is in particular defective in C/EBPβ-deficient mice in the later phases of induction, suggesting that the early phases may be triggered by factors other than C/EBPs. Moreover, IL-6 activation is normal and TNFα activation is defective in the mutant mice, indicating a differential role of C/EBPβ in the control of these two cytokines' production.