Evidence of a TH1-shift of local vaginal inflammatory response during bacterial vaginosis.
OBJECTIVE
To determine the levels of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines in the vagina of healthy women and in bacterial vaginosis (BV) patients.


METHODS
Interleukin (IL)-1alpha, 1beta, 5 and 10 were analyzed by ELISA in vaginal wash fluids from 50 non-pregnant patients with BV and 112 healthy women.


RESULTS
Levels of IL-1beta were higher and those of IL-10 lower in BV-patients than in healthy women. There was a tendency towards higher levels of IL-1alpha in BV patients, but these data were not statistically significant.


CONCLUSIONS
We found evidence for a shift towards a TH1-dominated vaginal cytokine profile in the pathogenesis of BV. Levels of a TH1-cytokine were elevated and those of a TH2-cytokine lowered in BV-patients as compared to healthy controls. This points to a vaginal TH1-response during BV and to the importance of cell-mediated immunity in local vaginal infections.
Anton
G
G
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Klinikum Grosshadern, Ludwig Maximilian University, Munich, Germany.
Rid
J
J
Mylonas
I
I
Friese
K
K
Weissenbacher
E-R
ER
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D007378:Interleukins / Q000032:analysis*; D007778:Lactobacillus / Q000302:isolation & purification; D008875:Middle Aged; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D018417:Th1 Cells / Q000276:immunology*; D014621:Vagina / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D016585:Vaginosis, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology
D007378:Interleukins