IL15RA, Official Symbol IL15RAprovided by HGNC Official Full Name interleukin 15 receptor subunit alphaprovided by HGNC Primary source HGNC:HGNC:5978 See related Ensembl:ENSG00000134470 MIM:601070; AllianceGenome:HGNC:5978 Gene type protein coding RefSeq status REVIEWED Organism Homo sapiens Lineage Eukaryota; Metazoa; Chordata; Craniata; Vertebrata; Euteleostomi; Mammalia; Eutheria; Euarchontoglires; Primates; Haplorrhini; Catarrhini; Hominidae; Homo Also known as CD215 Summary This gene encodes a cytokine receptor that specifically binds interleukin 15 (IL15) with high affinity. The receptors of IL15 and IL2 share two subunits, IL2R beta and IL2R gamma. This forms the basis of many overlapping biological activities of IL15 and IL2. The protein encoded by this gene is structurally related to IL2R alpha, an additional IL2-specific alpha subunit necessary for high affinity IL2 binding. Unlike IL2RA, IL15RA is capable of binding IL15 with high affinity independent of other subunits, which suggests distinct roles between IL15 and IL2. This receptor is reported to enhance cell proliferation and expression of apoptosis inhibitor BCL2L1/BCL2-XL and BCL2. Multiple alternatively spliced transcript variants of this gene have been reported.[provided by RefSeq, Apr 2010] Expression Ubiquitous expression in gall bladder (RPKM 5.8), lung (RPKM 5.5) and 24 other tissues See more Orthologs mouse all