Cen Tiantian, Huang Minxuan, Li Mingcai, Jin Jie, Ding Qunli, Lv Dan, Fei Lin, Wang Shanshan, Ma Hongying
Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease of Ningbo, The First Affiliated Hospital of Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang 315010, P.R. China.
Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Cixi, Zhejiang 315300, P.R. China.
Exp Ther Med. 2024 Jun 5;28(2):312. doi: 10.3892/etm.2024.12601. eCollection 2024 Aug.
Interleukin (IL)-41 is a novel immunomodulatory cytokine involved in the pathogenesis of several inflammatory and metabolic illnesses. However, it remains unclear how IL-41 contributes to the pathogenesis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Therefore, the aim of the present study was to explore the correlation between the expression level of IL-41 and acute exacerbation of COPD (AECOPD). In total, 107 patients with COPD and 56 healthy controls were recruited from the First Affiliated Hospital of Ningbo University (Ningbo, China). Serum IL-41, IL-6, and matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) levels were evaluated using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Serum amyloid A (SAA) and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels were assessed in the hospital laboratory. The levels of IL-41 were higher in the AECOPD group than in the stable COPD (SCOPD) and control groups (P<0.0001). IL-6, SAA and CRP levels, the percentage of neutrophils, as well as neutrophil-to-lymphocyte and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratios were higher in the AECOPD group than those in the SCOPD and control groups. The smoking index was positively correlated with serum IL-41, CRP and SAA levels. The expression level of IL-41 was correlated with the number of acute exacerbations, severity of the exacerbations, and COPD assessment test scores in the AECOPD group. Examination of the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves showed that IL-41, especially when combined with other inflammatory factors, had a specific diagnostic value for AECOPD. According to the ROC curve analysis, the area under the curve (AUC) for IL-41 was 0.742 (P=0.051), and the AUC for IL-41 combined with other inflammatory factors was 0.925 (P=0.030). Increased serum IL-41 levels were associated with AECOPD and may play a role in the monitoring and evaluation of COPD.
白细胞介素（IL）-41是一种新型免疫调节细胞因子，参与多种炎症和代谢性疾病的发病机制。然而，IL-41如何导致慢性阻塞性肺疾病（COPD）的发病机制仍不清楚。因此，本研究的目的是探讨IL-41表达水平与COPD急性加重（AECOPD）之间的相关性。总共从宁波大学附属第一医院（中国宁波）招募了107例COPD患者和56例健康对照。采用酶联免疫吸附测定法评估血清IL-41、IL-6和基质金属蛋白酶-2（MMP-2）水平。在医院实验室评估血清淀粉样蛋白A（SAA）和C反应蛋白（CRP）水平。AECOPD组的IL-41水平高于稳定期COPD（SCOPD）组和对照组（P<0.0001）。AECOPD组的IL-6、SAA和CRP水平、中性粒细胞百分比以及中性粒细胞与淋巴细胞和血小板与淋巴细胞的比值均高于SCOPD组和对照组。吸烟指数与血清IL-41、CRP和SAA水平呈正相关。AECOPD组中IL-41的表达水平与急性加重次数、加重严重程度和COPD评估测试评分相关。对受试者工作特征（ROC）曲线的检查表明，IL-41，特别是与其他炎症因子联合时，对AECOPD具有特定的诊断价值。根据ROC曲线分析，IL-41的曲线下面积（AUC）为0.742（P=0.051），IL-41与其他炎症因子联合的AUC为0.925（P=0.030）。血清IL-41水平升高与AECOPD相关，可能在COPD的监测和评估中发挥作用。
