title: Plasma soluble CD30 level correlates negatively with age in children.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Atopic diseases are thought to be associated with cytokine-mediated immune dysregulation, for example, a T helper cell type 1/2 (Th1/Th2) imbalance. CD30 is proposed to be one of the surrogate markers for Th2 immunity. In this study, we investigated whether CD30 is a good marker for atopy and Th2 predominance in a pediatric population.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study included 61 children with atopy and 27 normal controls. The expression of CD30 on the surface of T and B lymphocytes and soluble CD30 (sCD30) in plasma was determined.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was no difference in the surface expression of CD30 on B or T lymphocytes. Similarly, sCD30 levels in plasma were not different between the 2 groups. Nevertheless, we found a strong negative correlation between sCD30 and age in the control group (r = -0.72, p<0.001; sCD30 = 76.1 - 5.18 x age) as well as in the atopy group (r = -0.45, p<0.01; sCD30 = 61.1 - 3.56 x age).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  An inverse relationship was found between age and sCD30 level in children. However, our findings suggest that CD30 is not a good marker for atopic disease and that further studies on sCD30 levels must take age into consideration.
authors: Division of Immunology, Rheumatology and Allergy, Department of Pediatrics, Taichung Veterans General Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan.
authors: Jung Yu
authors: JY
authors: Chen
authors: Lin Shien
authors: LS
authors: Fu
authors: Jao Jia
authors: JJ
authors: Chu
authors: Hou Chuan
authors: HC
authors: Chen
authors: Chin Shiang
authors: CS
authors: Chi
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000737:chemistry; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006969:Hypersensitivity, Immediate / Q000276:immunology*; D017730:Ki-1 Antigen / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D017730:Ki-1 Antigen