title: Soluble interleukin-2 receptor and disease activity in Crohn's disease.
abstract: An ELISA was used to measure concentrations of soluble interleukin-2 receptor (sIL-2R) alpha chain in the sera of patients with Crohn's disease. In a group of 56 patients, serum concentrations of sIL-2R were significantly raised in patients with active disease compared with patients with inactive disease and age-matched control populations. There was a significant correlation between serum sIL-2R concentration and disease activity as assessed by the Harvey-Bradshaw index (r = +0.60; P less than 0.001) and laboratory measurements of disease activity including C-reactive protein (r = +0.79; P less than 0.001), ESR (r = +0.64; P less than 0.001) and platelet count (r = +0.533; P less than 0.001). We also found a negative correlation between sIL-2R levels and serum albumin (r = -0.66; P less than 0.001). In longitudinal studies, changes in the concentration of serum sIL-2R reflected the changes in disease activity. Soluble IL-2R, therefore, offers a new measure of disease activity in Crohn's disease with a potential advantage over other laboratory parameters currently available in that it may reflect more accurately the underlying immunopathogenic process.
authors.affiliation: University of Edinburgh Department of Medicine, Royal Infirmary, UK.
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Symons
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Watchet
authors.forename: G W
authors.initials: GW
authors.lastname: Duff
mesh_terms: D000305:Adrenal Cortex Hormones / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D003424:Crohn Disease / Q000097:blood* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000276:immunology / Q000601:surgery; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007111:Immunity, Cellular; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D015375:Receptors, Interleukin-2 / Q000032:analysis*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000305:Adrenal Cortex Hormones; D015415:Biomarkers; D015375:Receptors, Interleukin-2