title: Plasma Interleukin-37 Is Elevated in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis: Its Correlation with Disease Activity and Th1/Th2/Th17-Related Cytokines.
abstract: Interleukin- (IL-) 37 is a novel anti-inflammatory cytokine that suppresses immune response and inflammation. This study was performed to determine whether IL-37 was elevated in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and investigate the correlation between IL-37 level and disease activity and the concentration of Th1/Th2/Th17-related cytokines. Clinical parameters of disease activity, including the 28-joint disease activity score (DAS28) and C-reactive protein (CRP), were collected in 34 RA patients and 34 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Plasma IL-37 was measured by ELISA. Plasma levels of TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-2, IL-4, IL-5, IL-6, IL-7, IL-8, IL-10, IL-12, IL-13, IL-17, G-CSF, GM-CSF, IFN-γ, MCP-1, and MIP-1β were analyzed using the Bio-Plex suspension array system. It was found that IL-37 levels were elevated markedly in RA patients and almost undetectable in healthy controls. In addition, IL-37 levels in patients with active RA were significantly enhanced as compared with those in patients of remission. More importantly, IL-37 showed a significant correlation with disease activity (DAS28) and IL-4, IL-7, IL-10, IL-12, and IL-13 concentrations in RA patients. These findings suggest that IL-37 plays an important role in the pathogenesis of RA and may prove to be a potential biomarker of active RA.
authors.affiliation: Department of Rheumatology, Changhai Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: Ting
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Xia
authors.affiliation: Department of Burn Surgery, Changhai Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: Xing-feng
authors.initials: XF
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.affiliation: Department of Blood Transfusion, Changhai Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: Bao-hua
authors.initials: BH
authors.lastname: Qian
authors.affiliation: Department of Burn Surgery, Changhai Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: He
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Fang
authors.affiliation: Department of Burn Surgery, Changhai Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: Jun-jie
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Rheumatology, Changhai Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: Lan-ling
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Rheumatology, Changhai Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: Ya-fei
authors.initials: YF
authors.lastname: Pang
authors.affiliation: Department of Rheumatology, Changhai Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: Ju
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Tissue Engineering and Reparative Dentistry, School of Dentistry, Cardiff University, Heath Park, Cardiff CF14 4XY, UK.
authors.forename: Xiao-qing
authors.initials: XQ
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.affiliation: Department of Burn Surgery, Changhai Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: Zhao-fan
authors.initials: ZF
authors.lastname: Xia
authors.affiliation: Department of Rheumatology, Changhai Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: Dong-bao
authors.initials: DB
authors.lastname: Zhao
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000097:blood* / Q000473:pathology; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D018932:Chemokine CCL2 / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D016178:Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000097:blood; D007375:Interleukin-1 / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D006377:T-Lymphocytes, Helper-Inducer / Q000378:metabolism*; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; C111835:CCL2 protein, human; D018932:Chemokine CCL2; C508587:IL37 protein, human; D007375:Interleukin-1; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D007371:Interferon-gamma; D016178:Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor