Serum levels of interleukin (IL)-27 in patients with ischemic heart disease

ObjectiveCytokines, the key mediators of immune responses, play an important role in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases. The aim of this study was to evaluate the serum levels of IL-27 in patients with ischemic heart disease (IHD) and also to clarify its association with traditional risk factors of the disease.MethodsA total of 120 patients with IHD as having acute myocardial infarction (AMI; n = 60) or unstable angina (UA; n = 60) and 60 sex- and age-matched healthy subjects as a control group were enrolled in this cross-sectional, case-controlled study. Serum samples were collected from all participants (for AMI patients at 3-5 days after events and for UA at admission time) and tested for the levels of IL-27 by use of ELISA method.ResultsThe mean serum levels of IL-27 in AMI group (38.00 ± 14.38 Pg/ml) and UA group (35.77 ± 18.93 Pg/ml) were significantly higher than those observed in the control group (24.91 ± 14.96 Pg/ml; P < 0.0001 and 0.001, respectively). The mean serum levels of IL-27 in IHD patients with or without a certain traditional risk factor including hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes smoking were significantly higher as compared to those in the control group.ConclusionsThese results showed that the higher serum levels of IL-27 were associated with IHD. The presence or absence of certain traditional risk factors of IHD did not influence the serum levels of cytokine.

► In this study, serum samples from 120 patients with IHD and 60 healthy subjects were tested for the levels of IL-27. ► The mean serum levels of IL-27 in patients were significantly higher than those of the control group. ► The presence of certain traditional risk factors of IHD did not influence the levels of cytokine.