Somnogenic effects of rabbit and recombinant human interferons in rabbits

A comparative study of interferon-alpha and interferon-beta shows that interferon-alpha is intrinsically somnogenic and pyrogenic, while interferon-beta does not show these characteristics. Interferon synergism with trace microbial products influences the central actions of interferon-alpha. Rabbit species-specific interferon exhibits higher somnogenic and pyrogenic potency than the recombinant human product.