title: Increased percentage of IL-12+ monocytes in the blood correlates with the presence of active MRI lesions in MS.
abstract: Interleukin (IL)-12 is a cytokine thought to play a major role in the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis (MS). We have previously shown that patients with progressive MS have a high percentage of IL-12-producing monocytes in the blood compared to normal individuals. We analyzed 269 blood samples from 189 MS patients for the percentage of IL-12-producing monocytes. We found that the increased IL-12 expression correlates with disability, as measured by the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS), and with disease activity, measured by the presence of gadolinium-enhancing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) lesions.
authors.affiliation: Center for Neurologic Diseases, Brigham and Women's Hospital, and Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Makhlouf
authors.forename: H L
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Weiner
authors.forename: S J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Khoury
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D018664:Interleukin-12 / Q000097:blood*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009000:Monocytes / Q000378:metabolism*; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000503:physiopathology; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
chemical_list: D018664:Interleukin-12