Interleukin-1 (IL-1) is a proinflammatory cytokine that plays a central role in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). In order to elucidate the mechanism of motility disorders frequently observed in IBD, we investigated the long term effects of IL-1 on rat ileal smooth muscle contractility by using an organ culture system. When ileal smooth muscle strips were cultured with IL-1 (10 ng/ml), contractions elicited by high K ؉ and carbachol were inhibited in a time-dependent manner. IL-1 more strongly inhibited the carbachol-induced contractions than high K ؉ with decreasing myosin light chain phosphorylation. In the ␣-toxin-permeabilized ileal muscle, carbachol with GTP or guanosine 5 -3-O-(thio)triphosphate increased the Ca 2؉ sensitivity of contractile elements, and this G protein-coupled Ca 2؉ sensitization was significantly reduced in the IL-1-treated ileum. Among the functional proteins involved in the smooth muscle Ca 2؉ sensitization, CPI-17 expression was significantly reduced after the culture with IL-1, whereas the expressions of RhoA, ROCK-I, ROCK-II, MYPT-1, myosin light chain kinase, and myosin phosphatase (PP1) were unchanged. The phosphorylation level of CPI-17 by carbachol was low in accordance with the decrease in CPI-17 expression due to IL-1 treatment. In contrast, constitutively phosphorylated MYPT-1 was also decreased in the IL-1-treated muscles. These results suggest that long term treatment with IL-1 decreases either CPI-17 expression or MYPT-1 phosphorylation, which may result in an increase in myosin phosphatase activity to reduce force generation. Based on these findings, we consider IL-1 to be an important mediator of gastrointestinal motility disorders in IBD, and CPI-17 and MYPT-1 are key molecules in the decreased smooth muscle contractility due to IL-1.