title: Serum Levels of Lipopolysaccharide and 1,3-β-D-Glucan Refer to the Severity in Patients with Crohn's Disease.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Interactions between the host and gut microbial community contribute to the pathogenesis of Crohn's disease (CD). In this study, we aimed to detect lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and 1,3-β-D-glucan (BG) in the sera of CD patients and clarify the potential role in the diagnosis and therapeutic approaches.
  
  
  METHODS
  Serum samples were collected from 46 patients with active CD (A-CD), 22 CD patients at remission stage (R-CD), and 20 healthy controls, and the levels of LPS, BG, and TNF in sera were determined by ELISA. Moreover, sixteen patients with A-CD received anti-TNF monoclonal antibody therapy (infliximab, IFX) at a dose of 5 mg/kg body weight at weeks 0, 2, and 6, and the levels of LPS and BG were also tested at week 12 after the first intravenous infusion.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Serum levels of LPS and BG were found to be markedly increased in A-CD patients compared with R-CD patients and healthy controls (P < 0.05). They were also observed to be positively correlated with CDAI, ESR, and SES-CD, respectively (P < 0.05). Furthermore, the levels of TNF in sera had a significant correlation with LPS and BG, respectively. The concentrations of LPS and BG were demonstrated to be significantly downregulated in the sera of A-CD patients 12 weeks after IFX treatment (P < 0.05), suggesting that blockade of TNF could inhibit bacterial endotoxin absorption, partially through improving intestinal mucosal barrier.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Serum levels of LPS and BG are significantly increased in A-CD patients and positively correlated with the severity of the disease. Blockade of intestinal mucosal inflammation with IFX could reduce the levels of LPS and BG in sera. Therefore, this study has shed some light on measurement of serum LPS and BG in the diagnosis and treatment of CD patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital of Tongji University, Shanghai 200072, China.
authors.forename: Yanmin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital of Tongji University, Shanghai 200072, China.
authors.forename: Guangxi
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital of Tongji University, Shanghai 200072, China.
authors.forename: Chong
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-8058-8104
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital of Tongji University, Shanghai 200072, China.
authors.forename: Wenjing
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases, Huaihe Hospital of Henan University, Kaifeng 475000, China.
authors.forename: Zhenkun
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital of Tongji University, Shanghai 200072, China.
authors.forename: Zhanju
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D003424:Crohn Disease / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D000069285:Infliximab / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D047071:beta-Glucans / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D047071:beta-Glucans; C033363:beta-1,3-glucan; D000069285:Infliximab