title: Increased plasma IL-6, IL-8, TNF-alpha, and G-CSF in Japanese narcolepsy.
abstract: Narcolepsy is a chronic hypersomnia involving excessive daytime sleepiness and cataplexy. Some susceptibility genes and environmental factors suggest that post-infectious immunological alterations underlie its pathophysiology. To investigate the immunological alterations in narcolepsy patients, we examined cytokines. Nine healthy controls and twenty-one narcolepsy patients with cataplexy were studied. All subjects were positive for the HLA-DRB1(∗)1501-DQB1(∗)0602 allele. Age-, sex-, and body mass index -matched healthy controls were selected. Plasma samples were separated using EDTA-2K-coated blood collection tubes. Bioplex Pro Human Cytokine 17-Plex Assays were used to measure plasma cytokines. Elevations of interleukin (IL)-6, IL-8, granulocyte- colony stimulating factor (G-CSF), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha were found in the narcolepsy group compared with healthy controls (p<0.05). G-CSF values were significantly correlated with the disease duration in narcolepsy patients (r=0.426, p<0.05). IL-8 and G-CSF play major roles in neutrophil activation in respiratory diseases. Since environmental factors including infection are reportedly associated with narcolepsy onset, elevated IL-8 and G-CSF may be involved in the pathophysiology of narcolepsy.
authors.affiliation: Sleep Disorders Project, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science, Kamikitazawa 2-1-6, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo 156-8506, Japan. Electronic address: tanaka-ss@igakuken.or.jp.
authors.forename: Susumu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tanaka
authors.affiliation: Sleep Disorders Project, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science, Kamikitazawa 2-1-6, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo 156-8506, Japan.
authors.forename: Makoto
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Honda
authors.affiliation: Sleep Disorders Project, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science, Kamikitazawa 2-1-6, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo 156-8506, Japan.
authors.forename: Hiromi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Toyoda
authors.affiliation: Sleep Disorders Project, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science, Kamikitazawa 2-1-6, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo 156-8506, Japan.
authors.forename: Tohru
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kodama
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002385:Cataplexy / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D015870:Gene Expression; D059866:HLA-DQ beta-Chains / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D059811:HLA-DRB1 Chains / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D016209:Interleukin-8 / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D059866:HLA-DQ beta-Chains; C069051:HLA-DQB1 antigen; D059811:HLA-DRB1 Chains; C489631:HLA-DRB1*15:01 antigen; C508600:IL6 protein, human; D015850:Interleukin-6; D016209:Interleukin-8; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha
keywords: Cytokine; G-CSF; IL-8; Narcolepsy; Sleep