title: Serum endocan levels as a marker of disease activity in patients with Behçet disease.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Endocan is a novel human endothelial cell-specific molecule. The central role of leukocytes and endothelial dysfunction in the development of Behçet disease (BD) led us to hypothesize that endocan might be a marker of this disease.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  We investigated the relationship between serum levels of endocan and disease activity in patients with BD.
  
  
  METHODS
  In all, 33 patients (16 active, 17 inactive) with BD and 35 healthy persons were included in the study. Endocan and C-reactive protein were measured in all subjects.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Patients with BD had significantly higher serum endocan levels. Mean serum levels of endocan were 1.29 ± 0.60 ng/mL (range: 0.58-2.99) in patients with BD and 0.75 ± 0.16 ng/mL (range: 0.48-1.21) in control subjects (P < .001). In patients with BD, serum endocan levels correlated moderately but significantly with C-reactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, and disease activity. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis suggested that the optimum endocan level cut-off point for patients with BD was 0.87 ng/mL, with a sensitivity and specificity of 75.8% and 80%, respectively (area under curve 0.835, 95% confidence interval 0.738-0.932).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The main limitation of our study is the relatively small sample size.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Circulating endocan may be a marker of BD activity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Kecioren Training and Research Hospital, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ilknur
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Balta
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Gulhane Medical Academy, Ankara, Turkey. Electronic address: drsevketb@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Sevket
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Balta
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Ankara Training and Research Hospital, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ozgul Mustu
authors.initials: OM
authors.lastname: Koryurek
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Gulhane Medical Academy, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Sait
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Demirkol
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Chemistry, University College London Medical School, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Dimitri P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Mikhailidis
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Gulhane Medical Academy, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Turgay
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Celik
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Gulhane Medical Academy, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Mustafa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cakar
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Gulhane Medical Academy, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ugur
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Kucuk
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Ankara Training and Research Hospital, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Meral
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Eksioglu
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Chemistry, Gulhane Medical Academy, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Yasemin Gulcan
authors.initials: YG
authors.lastname: Kurt
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001528:Behcet Syndrome / Q000097:blood* / Q000503:physiopathology; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D001799:Blood Sedimentation; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000032:analysis* / Q000378:metabolism; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D018450:Disease Progression; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins / Q000032:analysis / Q000097:blood*; D011509:Proteoglycans / Q000032:analysis / Q000097:blood*; D012372:ROC Curve; D012016:Reference Values; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; C101134:ESM1 protein, human; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins; D011509:Proteoglycans; D002097:C-Reactive Protein
keywords: AUC; BD; Behçet disease; C-reactive protein; CRP; ESM; ESR; ICAM; LFA; ROC; VEGF; area under curve; endocan; endothelial cell–specific molecule; endothelium; erythrocyte sedimentation rate; inflammation; intercellular adhesion molecule; leukocyte function-associated antigen; receiver operating characteristic; vascular endothelial growth factor