Alcohol modulates circulating levels of interleukin-6 and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 in chronic pancreatitis.
BACKGROUND
Cytokines are markers of acute pancreatic inflammation and essential for distant organ injury, but they also stimulate pancreatic fibrogenesis and are thus involved in the progression from acute pancreatitis to chronic pancreatic injury and fibrosis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the circulating levels of IL-6, MCP-1, TGF-beta1, IGF-1 and IGFBP-3 in patients with alcoholic chronic pancreatitis (CP).


METHODS
Twelve male patients with severe CP and 11 matched controls ingested 40 g alcohol. Plasma cytokine concentrations were measured for 24 h and assessed by sandwich ELISA techniques.


RESULTS
IL-6 was higher in CP at fasting and 1, 4 and 24 h after alcohol intake (P < 0.04), and a significantly greater rise was found at 1 h compared to pre-stimulatory conditions and controls (P < 0.01). MCP-1 plasma levels in CP were significantly decreased at I h (P < 0.01) and 4 h (P < 0.001) compared to pre-stimulatory levels and controls, and a variance analysis showed significantly (P < 0.001) lower post-stimulatory levels at 1 h and 4 h both in CP and in controls. Alcohol consumption (40 g), however, did not influence plasma levels of TGF-1beta, IGF-I or IGFBP-3 in either of the two groups at the time frame applied.


CONCLUSIONS
Acute alcohol intake induces a rise in the plasma levels of IL-6 in CP as compared to controls. The low circulating concentrations of MCP-1 1 and 4 h following alcohol consumption might possibly reflect that this mediator acts locally via autocrine mechanisms.
Pedersen
N
N
Dept. of Medicine M, Division of Gastroenterology, Glostrup Hospital, University of Copenhagen, Denmark.
Larsen
S
S
Seidelin
J B
JB
Nielsen
O H
OH
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002492:Central Nervous System Depressants / Q000494:pharmacology*; D018932:Chemokine CCL2 / Q000097:blood*; D000431:Ethanol / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D018972:Insulin-Like Growth Factor Binding Protein 3 / Q000097:blood; D007334:Insulin-Like Growth Factor I / Q000378:metabolism; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019512:Pancreatitis, Alcoholic / Q000097:blood*; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta / Q000097:blood; D053773:Transforming Growth Factor beta1
D002492:Central Nervous System Depressants; D018932:Chemokine CCL2; D018972:Insulin-Like Growth Factor Binding Protein 3; D015850:Interleukin-6; C508960:TGFB1 protein, human; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta; D053773:Transforming Growth Factor beta1; D000431:Ethanol; D007334:Insulin-Like Growth Factor I