title: Transient elevation of interleukin-16 levels at the initial stage of meningitis in children.
abstract: IL-16 is an immunomodulatory cytokine that is characterized by chemotactic activity and stimulation of proinflammatory cytokine expression in monocytic cells. We studied IL-16 using ELISA in children with meningitis. When meningeal symptoms existed, IL-16 levels were high in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of both bacterial (939 +/- 877 ng/l, n = 20) and aseptic (341 +/- 371 ng/l, n = 23) meningitis. The values in the CSF were significantly higher than those in non-meningitis controls (29 +/- 8 ng/l, n = 22, P < 0.0001). After meningeal symptoms disappeared, IL-16 levels in bacterial (191 +/- 149 ng/l, n = 10, P = 0.0042) and aseptic (159 +/- 188 ng/l, n = 13, P = 0.0118) meningitis were lower than those during the symptomatic stage. IL-16 levels were the highest before day 5 of the illness and then gradually fell. Significant correlations were found between IL-16 levels and both G-CSF levels (r = 0.783, n = 11, p = 0.0029) and IL-6 levels (r = 0.818, n = 12, P = 0.0005) in the CSF of bacterial and aseptic meningitis. IL-16 levels in all CSF samples from non-meningitis controls were lower than those in serum. In contrast, IL-16 levels in the CSF in six of 16 samples from bacterial meningitis and two of 18 samples from aseptic meningitis were higher than those in serum. Serum levels of IL-16 did not fluctuate throughout the course of meningitis. These data indicate that IL-16 levels rise transiently in CSF at the initial stage of meningitis. We speculate that IL-16 may promote inflammatory responses during meningitis in concert with other proinflammatory cytokines.
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics, Mizonokuchi Hospital, Teikyo University School of Medicine, Kawasaki, Japan. tetsuomi@med.teikyo-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ishiguro
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shimbo
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D016179:Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D019410:Interleukin-16 / Q000097:blood / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid*; D008297:Male; D008582:Meningitis, Aseptic / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid / Q000276:immunology*; D016920:Meningitis, Bacterial / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D019410:Interleukin-16; D016179:Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor