NDT Advance Access originally published online on April 20, 2007
Nephrology Dialysis Transplantation 2007 22(8):2230-2238; doi:10.1093/ndt/gfm179
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Expression of IL-19 correlates with Th2 cytokines in uraemic patients
1Institute of Biopharmaceutical Sciences, 2Institute of Basic Medical Sciences and 3Institute of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Medical College, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan, 4Department of Anesthesiology, 5Department of Medical Research, 6Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, and 7Department of Nephrology, Chi-Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan and 8Department of Anesthesiology, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan
Correspondence and offprint requests to: Prof. Ming-Shi Chang, Graduate Institute of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, National Cheng Kung University, College of Medicine, Tainan 704, Taiwan. Email: mschang{at}mail.ncku.edu.tw
| Abstract |
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Background. Patients with end-stage renal disease are thought to be in a chronic state of inflammation. They also have an impaired immune response with a dysregulated Th1/Th2 cytokine network. Interleukin (IL)-19, which belongs to the IL-10 family, is a newly discovered proinflammatory cytokine. IL-19 alters the balance of Th1/Th2 cells in favour of Th2. The aims of the present study were to assess the changes in serum levels of IL-19 and their correlation with Th2 cytokine production in uraemic patients.
Methods. Seventy-three uraemic patients with haemodialysis were evaluated; 33 healthy volunteers served as controls. Serum levels of IL-19, -4, -5, -6, -10, -13 and tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-
were analysed using ELISA. Monocytes and T cells isolated from the patients and healthy volunteers were cultured in vitro, and cytokine production was determined.
Results. IL-19 expression in the patients; but not in healthy controls, correlated positively with both the proinflammatory cytokines (IL-6 and TNF-
) and the Th2 cytokines (IL-4, IL-5, IL-6, IL-10 and IL-13). Cultured monocytes from patients with high IL-19 serum levels produced more IL-19 in vitro. Additionally, uraemic serum or oxidized low-density lipoproteins up-regulated the IL-19 transcripts expression in resting monocytes. Compared with T cells from healthy controls, uraemic T cells expressed more endogenous Th2 cytokine transcripts and further responded to IL-19 stimulation in Th2 cytokine production in vitro.
Conclusions. IL-19 expression in uraemic patients correlated with Th2 immune responses which might be involved in the cytokine dysregulation in uraemia.
Keywords: cytokines; haemodialysis; interleukin-19; uraemia
Received for publication: 18. 9.06
Accepted in revised form: 7. 3.07