Effects of insulin and glucose on cytokine production from peripheral blood mononuclear cells.
BACKGROUND
Blood glucose levels should be controlled in patients with critical ill, regardless of whether they are diabetic. Whether hyperglycemia or insulin influences the pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory cytokine production in circulating cells remains unclear. In this study, we attempted to identify how hyperglycemia and insulin affect cytokine production in in vitro-stimulated peripheral mononuclear cells (PBMCs).


METHODS
Nine healthy subjects were enrolled in this study. Cell cultures of stimulated PBMCs were performed with or without glucose or insulin treatment. Supernatants were analyzed for levels of interferon (IFN)-gamma, interleukin (IL)-1beta, IL-6, IL-10, IL-12 and transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta1. The results were statistically analyzed.


RESULTS
The lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulation significantly elevated levels of IFN-gamma, IL-1beta, IL-10 and IL-12 from the PBMCs. The IL-12 levels under LPS stimulation were significantly elevated after pretreatment with glucose alone, insulin alone, or a combination of glucose and insulin. However, insulin did not affect the response of IL-12 and other cytokines from hyperglycemic PBMCs.


CONCLUSIONS
Stimulated PBMCs with hyperglycemic status secreted more IL-12 than those with euglycemic status. Insulin treatment did not influence the IL-12 response from hyperglycemic stimulated PBMCs. More studies are needed to investigate the role of IL-12 in septic patients with hyperglycemia.
Wu
Huang-Pin
HP
Division of Pulmonary Medicine, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Keelung, Taiwan, ROC. whanpyng@cgmh.org.tw
Chen
Chih-Hung
CH
Hsieh
Hul-Chen
HC
Liu
Yu-Chih
YC
D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000502:physiology*; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D016207:Cytokines / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D006801:Humans; D006943:Hyperglycemia / Q000097:blood; D007328:Insulin / Q000502:physiology*; D018664:Interleukin-12 / Q000096:biosynthesis; D007963:Leukocytes, Mononuclear / Q000378:metabolism*
D001786:Blood Glucose; D016207:Cytokines; D007328:Insulin; D018664:Interleukin-12