title: Chemokines Rantes and interleukin-8 in the perinatal period: changes in serum concentrations.
abstract: Chemokines, a superfamily of polypeptide mediators, are a key component of immune surveillance and are implicated in the initiation of the inflammatory cascade. This study investigated whether serum concentrations of the chemokines regulated upon activation, normal T-cell expressed and presumably secreted (RANTES) and interleukin-8 (IL-8) change in the perinatal period because of the transition from intra- to extrauterine life, and compared determined values in mothers (MS) (n = 30) with those in their fetuses (UC), neonates (day of life 1 [N1] and 4 [N4]), and controls (CS) (n = 20). RANTES serum concentrations were higher in MS than in UC ( p < 0.006), N1 ( p < 0.0001), N4 ( p < 0.0001), and CS ( p < 0.0001). IL-8 serum concentrations in MS and UC, respectively, were significantly lower than in N1 ( p < 0.0002 and p < 0.0007) and N4 ( p < 0.0001 and p < 0.0001). Thus, after birth, neonatal serum concentrations of RANTES decrease, possibly because of elimination of the placenta (probable production site), and neonatal serum concentrations of IL-8 increase, possibly triggered by environmental antigenic stimuli to which the neonate is exposed.
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
authors.forename: Ariadne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Malamitsi-Puchner
authors.forename: Angeliki
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sarandakou
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tziotis
authors.forename: Emmanuel
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Economou
authors.forename: Efthimia
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Protonotariou
authors.forename: Ourania
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Rigopoulou
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D018946:Chemokine CCL5 / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn / Q000276:immunology*; D016209:Interleukin-8 / Q000097:blood*; D049590:Postpartum Period / Q000276:immunology*; D011247:Pregnancy / Q000276:immunology*; D012016:Reference Values; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D018946:Chemokine CCL5; D016209:Interleukin-8