Pérez-Mingan Gloria Caterine, Sierra-Merlano Rita Magola, Yepes Ismael, Vergara María Judith Palomino, Ortiz Miguel, Peña Breiner, Cano-Pérez Eder, Gómez-Camargo Doris
Departamento de Medicina Interna, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Cartagena, Cartagena 130001, Colombia.
Programa de Medicina, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Cartagena, Cartagena 130001, Colombia.
Genes (Basel). 2024 Dec 21;15(12):1639. doi: 10.3390/genes15121639.
BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to investigate the association of IL-6 with steatotic liver disease (SLD) and liver fibrosis (LF) in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients at a rheumatology center in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia.
This was a cross-sectional study that included RA and non-RA cases. The level of cellular expression of interleukin 6 (IL-6) was evaluated by flow cytometry in peripheral blood leukocytes, and the presence of SLD and LF was detected by elastosonography. The main outcome was to establish the association between the levels of cellular expression of IL-6 and the development of SLD and LF.
This study included 47 cases of RA and 34 cases on-RA, with a mean age of 54 and 55 years, respectively. The frequency of SLD was 55.3% in RA and 38.2% in non-RA. The frequency of LF was 12.8% in RA and 14.7% in non-RA, with no statistical difference. The levels of cellular expression of IL-6 were significantly higher in RA compared to non-RA. Cellular expression of IL-6 was associated with the presence of SLD (54% vs. 30.3%; = 0.002). This association was not maintained in RA cases (49.5% vs. 47.6%; = 0.571). No association was found between cellular expression of IL-6 and LF in the total population (43.8% vs. 42.7%; = 0.813) nor in RA cases (59.41% vs. 48.3%; = 0.526).
IL-6 levels were related to SLD in the evaluated sample, and RA was not a risk factor for SLD or LF. The prognostic role of IL-6 for SLD in patients with RA requires further studies.
背景/目的：本研究旨在调查在哥伦比亚印度卡塔赫纳的一个风湿病中心，类风湿关节炎（RA）患者中白细胞介素-6（IL-6）与脂肪性肝病（SLD）及肝纤维化（LF）之间的关联。
这是一项横断面研究，纳入了RA病例和非RA病例。通过流式细胞术评估外周血白细胞中白细胞介素6（IL-6）的细胞表达水平，并用弹性超声检查检测SLD和LF的存在情况。主要结果是确定IL-6的细胞表达水平与SLD和LF发生之间的关联。
本研究纳入了47例RA患者和34例非RA患者，平均年龄分别为54岁和55岁。RA患者中SLD的发生率为55.3%，非RA患者中为38.2%。RA患者中LF的发生率为12.8%，非RA患者中为14.7%，无统计学差异。与非RA患者相比，RA患者中IL-6的细胞表达水平显著更高。IL-6的细胞表达与SLD的存在相关（54%对30.3%；P = 0.002）。在RA病例中这种关联未持续存在（49.5%对47.6%；P = 0.571）。在总体人群中未发现IL-6的细胞表达与LF之间存在关联（43.8%对42.7%；P = 0.813），在RA病例中也未发现（59.41%对48.3%；P = 0.526）。
在所评估的样本中，IL-6水平与SLD相关，且RA不是SLD或LF的危险因素。IL-6对RA患者SLD的预后作用需要进一步研究。
