OBJECTIVETo study the effects of TNF-α on ICAM-1 and LFA-1 expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of children with febrile seizures (FS).

METHODSSixteen children with FS and 16 age- and gender-matched healthy children were enrolled. The samples of PBMC from FS children were randomized into two groups with or without TNF-α treatment (TNF-α concentration 1.0 ng/mL). PBMC were purified and cultured with a conventional method in vitro. The expression of ICAM-1 and LFA-1 in PBMC was determined by flow cytometry (FCM).

RESULTSICAM-1［(20±9)% vs (14±7)%)］and LFA-1［(43±16)% vs (30±16)%］expression in PBMC in the untreated FS group was significantly higher than that in the normal control group (P<0.05). Compared with the untreated FS group, the treatment with TNF-α remarkably increased the ICAM-1 expression［(27±11)%］(P<0.05). PBMC LFA-1 expression［(52±21)%］in the TNF-α-treated group was higher than that in the untreated FS group, although there were no statistical differences between the two groups.

CONCLUSIONSTNF-α treatment may increase LFA-1 and ICAM-1 expression in PBMC of children with FS.