Research on the association of cytokines with disease activity and ursodeoxycholic acid treatment response in patients with primary biliary cholangitis
10.3760/cma.j.cn114452-20240809-00443
- VernacularTitle:细胞因子与原发性胆汁性胆管炎疾病活动性及熊脱氧胆酸治疗应答的关联性
- Author:
Haolong LI
1
;
Fei WANG
;
Chunmei HUANG
;
Leili MAO
;
Siyu WANG
;
Li WANG
;
Yongzhe LI
Author Information
1. 中国医学科学院 北京协和医院检验科，北京 100730
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
Primary biliary cholangitis;
Ursodeoxycholic acid;
Cytokines;
Expression
- From:
Chinese Journal of Laboratory Medicine
2025;48(1):85-92
- CountryChina
- Language:Chinese
-
Abstract:
Objective:To detect the expression levels of 12 cytokines in the plasma of patients with primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) and explore their association with PBC disease activity and ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) therapeutic response.Methods:This study enrolled 127 patients with PBC who visited Peking Union Medical College Hospital between December 2021 and November 2023 (PBC group) and 32 healthy controls who underwent physical examinations during the same period (control group). The expression of 12 cytokines was measured using flow cytometry, and compared between groups. Spearman correlation analysis was performed to assess the relationship between cytokine levels and five laboratory indicators reflecting PBC disease activity [alkaline phosphatase (ALP), glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT), total bilirubin (TBil), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and total bile acid (TBA)]. Furthermore, the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was performed to evaluate the effectiveness of cytokines in distinguishing between patients who responded to UDCA treatment and those who did not.Results:The plasma interleukin (IL)-8 levels between the PBC group and healthy controls showed no significant differences, and the plasma IFN-γ levels in PBC patients were significantly higher than those in health controls ( P<0.05). Spearman analysis showed that IL-8 was positively correlated with ALP, GGT, TBil, AST, and TBA ( R2=0.348, 0.401, 0.406, 0.495, 0.417; all P<0.01), and negative correlation was observed between IFN-γand ALP, GGT, and TBA levels ( R2=-0.265, -0.253, -0.232; all P<0.05). The plasma IL-8 level in 52 PBC patients who did not respond to UDCA treatment was significantly higher, while the IFN-γ level was significantly lower than those in 56 PBC patients who responded to UDCA treatment (both P<0.05). ROC analysis showed that the area under the curve for distinguishing plasma IL-8 and IFN-γlevels between PBC patients responding to UDCA treatment and not is 0.631 and 0.783, respectively. The sensitivities were 87.5% and 90.5%, and the specificities were 44.2% and 57.9%, respectively. Conclusion:The levels of plasma IL-8 and IFN-γ are correlated with the disease activity of PBC and can be used to reflect the therapeutic responses to UDCA in PBC patients.
