title: Soluble interleukin-10 and transforming growth factor-beta in children with acute exacerbation of allergic asthma.
abstract: Cytokine-mediated interactions among inflammatory cells may contribute to pathogenesis of allergic asthma. To understand the role of soluble interleukin-10 (IL-10) and transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) on the disease activity and regulation in asthma, changes in serum concentrations of IL-10 and TGF-beta elaborated by activated T-lymphocyte before and after prednisolone therapy with clinical improvement were determined. Circulating levels of IL-10 and TGF-beta in sera from 16 normal control subjects and in sera from 22 allergic asthmatic children with acute exacerbation and in stable condition were respectively detected by commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits. The mean concentrations of serum IL-10 in asthmatics with acute exacerbation (6.77 +/- 4.08 pg/mL) and during stable condition (5.14 +/- 1.17 pg/mL) were lower than that in control subjects (7.15 +/- 4.72 pg/mL). However, the difference was not statistically significant among these three study groups. The mean concentration of serum TGF-beta in stable asthmatics (40.73 +/- 15.95 pg/mL) was significantly higher than that in asthmatics with acute exacerbation (27.64 +/- 3.66 pg/mL; p < 0.05) and that in healthy control group (28.77 +/- 8.35 pg/mL; p < 0.05), while there was no statistical difference between the latter two groups. This study provides further evidence that serum TGF-beta, rather than IL-10, may play a role in regulation of disease activity and serve as an indicator for clinical control of allergic asthmatics.
authors.affiliation: Taipei Veterans General Hospital and National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C.
authors.forename: Tzu-Chun
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Tsai
authors.forename: Jen-Her
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: Shu-Jen
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Ren-Bin
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Tang
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001249:Asthma / Q000097:blood* / Q000188:drug therapy; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D006801:Humans; D016753:Interleukin-10 / Q000097:blood*; D011239:Prednisolone / Q000627:therapeutic use; D013997:Time Factors; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D015415:Biomarkers; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta; D016753:Interleukin-10; D011239:Prednisolone