Elevated Plasma Levels Of Il-12 And Ifn-Gamma In Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Interleukin (IL)-12 and interferon (IFN)-gamma are involved in the pathogenesis of a number of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. In this study, we analyzed plasma expression of these two cytokines in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients, as well as their potential as biomarkers for SLE. In this study, we detected the plasma IL-12 and IFN-gamma levels by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in 44 patients with SLE and 44 healthy controls, results from our studies showed that the elevated plasma expression levels of IL-12 and IFN-gamma were observed in SLE patients compared with healthy subjects (P<0.001 and P=0.013, respectively). Significantly positive correlation was found between IL-12 and IFN-gamma (r=0.588, P<0.001). The area under curve (AUC) for IL-12 and IFN-gamma were (0.756, 95% CI: 0.654-0.858, P<0.001) and (0.653, 95% CI: 0.538-0.769, P=0.013), respectively. To conclude, elvated plasma levels of IL-12 and IFN-gamma in SLE suggest their potential role in this disease. In addition, plasma IL-12 and IFN-gamma may serve as auxiliary indexes for SLE diagnosis.