Increased serum interleukin 17 in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.
Interleukin 17 (IL-17) is a Th17 cytokine associated with inflammation, autoimmunity and defense against some bacteria, it has been implicated in many chronic autoimmune diseases including psoriasis, multiple sclerosis and systemic sclerosis. However, whether IL-17 plays a role in the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) remains unclear. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the serum IL-17 level in patients with SLE and it's associations with disease manifestations and activity. Fifty-seven patients with SLE and 30 healthy volunteers were recruited. Serum IL-17 levels were examined by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Statistic analyzes were performed by SPSS 10.01. Results show that serum IL-17 levels were significantly elevated in SLE patients as compared with normal controls. Nevertheless, no associations of serum IL-17 level with clinical and laboratory parameters were found; no significant difference regarding serum IL-17 level between SLE patients with nephritis and those without nephritis was found; no significant difference was found between Less active SLE and More active SLE; Correlation analysis between serum IL-17 levels and SLEDAI showed no association. Taken together, our results indicate increased serum IL-17 levels in SLE patients, suggesting that this cytokine may trigger the inflammatory process in SLE. However, no associations of serum IL-17 level with disease manifestations were found. Therefore, further studies are required to confirm this preliminary data.
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, Anhui, People's Republic of China.
Xue-Fei
XF
Zhao
Hai-Feng
HF
Pan
Hui
H
Yuan
Wen-Hui
WH
Zhang
Xiang-Pei
XP
Li
Gui-Hong
GH
Wang
Guo-Cui
GC
Wu
Hong
H
Su
Fa-Ming
FM
Pan
Wen-Xian
WX
Li
Lian-Hong
LH
Li
Guo-Ping
GP
Chen
Dong-Qing
DQ
Ye
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006801:Humans; D020381:Interleukin-17 / Q000097:blood*; D008180:Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D055815:Young Adult
D020381:Interleukin-17