School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Students' Scientific Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
PLoS One. 2022 Sep 1;17(9):e0273920. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0273920. eCollection 2022.
Encephalitis is caused by autoimmune or infectious agents marked by brain inflammation. Investigations have reported altered concentrations of the cytokines in encephalitis. This study was conducted to determine the relationship between encephalitis and alterations of cytokine levels in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and serum.
We found possibly suitable studies by searching PubMed, Embase, Scopus, and Web of Science, systematically from inception to August 2021. 23 articles were included in the meta-analysis. To investigate sources of heterogeneity, subgroup analysis and sensitivity analysis were conducted. The protocol of the study has been registered in PROSPERO with a registration ID of CRD42021289298.
A total of 23 met our eligibility criteria to be included in the meta-analysis. A total of 12 cytokines were included in the meta-analysis of CSF concentration. Moreover, 5 cytokines were also included in the serum/plasma concentration meta-analysis. According to the analyses, patients with encephalitis had higher CSF amounts of IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, CXCL10, and TNF-α than healthy controls. The alteration in the concentration of IL-2, IL-4, IL-17, CCL2, CXCL9, CXCL13, and IFN-γ was not significant. In addition, the serum/plasma levels of the TNF-α were increased in encephalitis patients, but serum/plasma concentration of the IL-6, IL-10, CXCL10, and CXCL13 remained unchanged.
This meta-analysis provides evidence for higher CSF concentrations of IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, CXCL10, and TNF-α in encephalitis patients compared to controls. The diagnostic and prognostic value of these cytokines and chemokines should be investigated in future studies.
脑炎是由自身免疫或感染性因素引起的，以脑炎症为特征。研究报告称，细胞因子在脑炎中的浓度发生了改变。本研究旨在确定脑炎与脑脊液（CSF）和血清中细胞因子水平改变之间的关系。
我们通过搜索 PubMed、Embase、Scopus 和 Web of Science 从成立到 2021 年 8 月，找到了可能适合的研究。共有 23 项研究纳入荟萃分析。为了调查异质性的来源，进行了亚组分析和敏感性分析。该研究的方案已在 PROSPERO 中注册，注册号为 CRD42021289298。
共有 23 项研究符合纳入荟萃分析的标准。共对 12 种 CSF 浓度细胞因子进行了荟萃分析。此外，还对血清/血浆浓度进行了荟萃分析，包括 5 种细胞因子。根据分析，脑炎患者的 CSF 中白细胞介素-6（IL-6）、白细胞介素-8（IL-8）、白细胞介素-10（IL-10）、CXCL10 和肿瘤坏死因子-α（TNF-α）的含量高于健康对照组。IL-2、IL-4、IL-17、CCL2、CXCL9、CXCL13 和 IFN-γ 的浓度变化不显著。此外，脑炎患者的血清/血浆 TNF-α 水平升高，但血清/血浆中 IL-6、IL-10、CXCL10 和 CXCL13 的浓度保持不变。
本荟萃分析提供了证据表明，与对照组相比，脑炎患者的 CSF 中白细胞介素-6（IL-6）、白细胞介素-8（IL-8）、白细胞介素-10（IL-10）、CXCL10 和 TNF-α 浓度更高。这些细胞因子和趋化因子的诊断和预后价值应在未来的研究中进行调查。
