Yamane K, Ihn H, Kubo M, Yazawa N, Kikuchi K, Soma Y, Tamaki K
Department of Dermatology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tokyo, Japan.
J Rheumatol. 2000 Apr;27(4):930-4.
KL-6 is a mucin-like glycoprotein that is strongly expressed on type II pneumocytes in the lung. Circulating KL-6 has been shown to be a sensitive marker of the disease activity of interstitial lung diseases. We determined the serum levels of KL-6 in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) and investigated whether these levels would serve as a useful marker of pulmonary fibrosis (PF) in patients with SSc.
The serum KL-6 levels were determined using a specific ELISA in 91 patients with SSc, and in 38 healthy controls.
The serum levels of KL-6 were significantly higher in patients with SSc than in healthy controls (923+/-860 vs. 382+/-55 U/ml; p<0.0001). The serum KL-6 levels of the patients with diffuse cutaneous SSc (dSSc) tended to be higher than those with limited cutaneous SSc (ISSc) (1054+/-1000 vs. 800+/-694 U/ml), but there was no significant difference between these 2 groups. The serum KL-6 levels in the patients with PF were significantly elevated compared to those without PF (1283+/-1056 vs. 520+/-148 U/ml; p<0.0001). Moreover, DLCO and VC were also significantly decreased in the patients with elevated KL-6 levels compared to those with normal levels (62+/-22% vs. 72+/-17%, p<0.05; 87 +/-20% vs. 100+/-18%, p<0.01, respectively).
Serum KL-6 level may be a useful serum marker for evaluating pulmonary fibrosis in patients with SSc.
KL-6是一种黏蛋白样糖蛋白，在肺Ⅱ型肺泡上皮细胞上强烈表达。循环中的KL-6已被证明是间质性肺疾病疾病活动的敏感标志物。我们测定了系统性硬化症（SSc）患者的血清KL-6水平，并研究这些水平是否可作为SSc患者肺纤维化（PF）的有用标志物。
采用特异性酶联免疫吸附测定法（ELISA）测定91例SSc患者和38例健康对照者的血清KL-6水平。
SSc患者的血清KL-6水平显著高于健康对照者（923±860 vs. 382±55 U/ml；p<0.0001）。弥漫性皮肤型SSc（dSSc）患者的血清KL-6水平倾向于高于局限性皮肤型SSc（lSSc）患者（1054±1000 vs. 800±694 U/ml），但两组之间无显著差异。与无PF的患者相比，PF患者的血清KL-6水平显著升高（1283±1056 vs. 520±148 U/ml；p<0.0001）。此外，与KL-6水平正常的患者相比，KL-6水平升高的患者的一氧化碳弥散量（DLCO）和肺活量（VC）也显著降低（分别为62±22% vs. 72±17%，p<0.05；87±20% vs. 100±18%，p<0.01）。
血清KL-6水平可能是评估SSc患者肺纤维化的有用血清标志物。
