title: Circulating levels of granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor in patients with the systemic inflammatory response syndrome.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) is a key regulator cytokine that modulates the proliferation and maturation of polymorphonuclear and mononuclear progenitors. This study was designed to investigate and clarify the role of GM-CSF in 52 critically ill patients with systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS).
  
  
  METHODS
  Serum levels of GM-CSF were detected by an immunoenzyme assay.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Our results clearly show that the serum concentrations of GM-CSF were significantly elevated in patients with infectious and noninfectious SIRS (33.2+/-45.7pg/ml, controls: 17.2+/-9.8pg/ml; p=0.0303). In addition, GM-CSF levels significantly decreased in patients with SIRS, particularly in patients with infectious SIRS, 5 and 7 days later. There was a clear tendency toward higher levels of GM-CSF in patients with poor, as compared with those having a good outcome of the disease.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results show that GM-CSF may play an important role in patients with infectious and noninfectious SIRS, and that GM-CSF levels progressively and significantly decrease in patients with infectious SIRS.
authors.affiliation: Section of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, Regional Hospital, Viale Borri 57, 21100 Varese, Italy. eiwle@tin.it
authors.forename: Donato
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Torre
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tambini
authors.forename: Mariangela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Manfredi
authors.forename: Valerio
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Mangani
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Livi
authors.forename: Viviana
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Maldifassi
authors.forename: Maurizio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chiaranda
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Campi
authors.forename: Filippo
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Speranza
mesh_terms: D000704:Analysis of Variance; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D016178:Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011446:Prospective Studies; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D018746:Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D016178:Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor