Change and significance of Th17 / IL-17 in peripheral blood of patients with acute asthma

Objective To observe the change and its clinical significance of Th17 cells and the expression of IL-17 in peripheral blood of patients with asthma. Methods 35 patients with mild asthma and 25 patients with severe asthma,and 30 cases healthy volunteers were recruited. The expression of peripheral blood Th17 cells was detected by flow cytometer. The IL-17 levels in peripheral blood were measured by ELISA. Results The percentage of Th17 cells in patients with severe asthma was higher than those in patients with mild asthma and healthy controls( P 0. 01),but the percentage of Th17 cells in the mild asthma group and healthy controls showed no significant difference( P 0. 05). The level of IL-17 was higher than in the severe asthma group that in the mild asthma group and the control group( P 0. 01). The level of IL-17 showed no significant difference between the mild asthma group and the healthy control group( P 0. 05). The percentage of Th17 cells and plasma IL-17 level were positive correlated( r = 0. 918,P 0. 05). The positive rate of Th17 cells and plasma IL-17 level in patients with asthma had positive correlation with the severity of asthma. Conclusion The expression of Th17 cells and IL-17 increases in patients with severe asthma,and they are positively associated with the severity of asthma.