title: Serum levels of monocyte chemotactic protein-3/CCL7 are raised in patients with systemic sclerosis: association with extent of skin sclerosis and severity of pulmonary fibrosis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine serum levels of monocyte chemotactic protein-3 (MCP-3) and its clinical associations in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc).
  
  
  METHODS
  Serum MCP-3 levels from 69 patients with SSc were examined by ELISA.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Serum MCP-3 levels were raised in patients with SSc (n = 69) compared with healthy controls (n = 28). Patients with diffuse cutaneous SSc (n = 36) had higher levels of serum MCP-3 than those with limited cutaneous SSc (n = 33). Patients with raised MCP-3 levels had pulmonary fibrosis and decreased vital capacity (VC) more often than those with normal MCP-3 levels. MCP-3 levels correlated positively with the extent of skin fibrosis, and inversely with %VC and carbon monoxide transfer factor (Tlco) in patients with SSc.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  MCP-3 levels were increased in patients with SSc, and correlated with the extent of skin sclerosis and the severity of pulmonary fibrosis. These results suggest that MCP-3 may have a role in the development of fibrosis in SSc.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Kanazawa University Graduate School of Medical Science, Japan.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yanaba
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Komura
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kodera
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Matsushita
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hasegawa
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Takehara
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sato
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D054410:Chemokine CCL7; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D016207:Cytokines / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018945:Monocyte Chemoattractant Proteins / Q000097:blood*; D011658:Pulmonary Fibrosis / Q000097:blood* / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D012595:Scleroderma, Systemic / Q000097:blood* / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D014797:Vital Capacity
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; C515450:CCL7 protein, human; D054410:Chemokine CCL7; D016207:Cytokines; D018945:Monocyte Chemoattractant Proteins