Elevated serum interleukin 15 (IL-15) in Behcet's disease / 대한류마티스학회지

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate clinical significance of interleukin 15 (IL-15) in patients with Behcet's disease (BD). METHODS: Serum samples were obtained from 31 patients with BD and 29 healthy controls. BD patients were divided into active and inactive group according to the presence of clinical manifestations on the day of sampling. Serum levels of IL-15 and IL-8 were measured by sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). RESULTS: Serum levels of IL-15 and IL-8 were significantly higher in BD patients than in healthy controls (117.2+/-26.2 pg/ml versus 51.8+/-15.4 pg/ml, p<0.01, 287.7+/-100.9 pg/ml versus 138.5+/-17.2 pg/ml, p<0.01, respectively). There was a significant correlation between serum levels of IL-15 and IL-8 IL-15 levels compared with those without it (161.1+/-68.8 pg/ml versus 96.4+/-3 4 . 8pg/ml, p<0.05). Serum levels of IL-15 and IL-8 tended to be higher in active group than in inactive group, but didn't reach statistical significance. CONCLUSION: Serum level of IL-15 was elevated in patients with BD, especially those with uveitis, but it did not seem to be useful as a marker of disease activity in BD.