Western analysis of intracellular interleukin-8 in human mononuclear leukocytes

Abstract

Most cytokines are stored in the cytoplasm until their release into the extracellular environment; however, some cytokines have been reported to localize in the nucleus. Traditional whole cell extract preparation does not provide information about the intracellular localization of cytokines. Here, we describe how to prepare cytoplasmic and nuclear extracts that can be analyzed by immunoblotting. While in this chapter we use this method to analyze intracellular localization of interleukin-8 (IL-8) in human mononuclear leukocytes, this protocol is adaptable to any cell type or protein of interest.