Cyclosporine mediates its immunosuppressive effect by preventing the synthesis 
of lymphokine mRNA during the process of T lymphocyte activation. Although the 
detailed molecular mechanism by which CsA achieves this effect is unknown, two 
proteins have been identified as putative intracellular CsA-receptor proteins. 
One of these, calmodulin, is an important Ca++-binding protein and enzyme 
cofactor and the other, cyclophilin, is a novel protein that is reported to have 
protein kinase activity. In this study the CsA-binding capacity of both these 
proteins has been assessed using CsA-coated ELISA plates and CsA-affinity gel 
matrices. CsA binding was shown by cyclophilin whereas no CsA-calmodulin binding 
could be detected under identical conditions. However, it was not possible to 
demonstrate any cyclophilin-associated protein kinase activity. Jurkat cells 
were probed for the presence of CsA-binding proteins using the CsA-affinity gel 
matrix; a 17 KD protein, most probably cyclophilin, was identified as the major 
CsA-binding protein. In addition, a previously unidentified CsA-binding 45 KD 
phosphoprotein was precipitated from 32P-labeled Jurkat cells. These results 
would support cyclophilin as the major, if not only, intracellular receptor 
protein for CsA. However, the relationship between binding of CsA to cyclophilin 
and/or the 45 KD phosphoprotein and the immunosuppressive effects of CsA is 
still unknown.