Relationship between the levels of IL-17, IL-4, IFN-γ and IL-33 in serum with bronchial asthma

Objective To detect the relationship between the levels of interleukin-17 (IL-17), interleukin 4 (IL-4), interferon gamma (IFN-γ) and interleukin-33 (IL-33) in serum in patients with bronchial asthma. Methods 93 patients with bronchial asthma were divided into acute phase group (52 cases) and remission phase group (41 cases), and 50 healthy cases were included as the control group.The levels of IL-17, IL-4, IFN-γ, IL-33 and immunoglobulin E (IgE) in serum were compared, and the relationship between cytokines and patients′ pulmonary function was analyzed. Results The levels of IL-17, IL-4, IFN-γ, IL-33 and IgE in acute phase group were significantly higher than those in remission phase group and control group, and also each level in remission phase group was higher than that in control group with statistical significance (P<0.05). PEF, FEV1 and FEV1/FVC in acute phase group were significantly lower than that in the remission phase group (P<0.05). Negative correlation between IL-17, IL-4, IFN-γ, IL-33 and FEV1, PEF were found in asthma patients (P<0.05), however, positive correlation between IL-17, IL-4, IFN-γ, IL-33 and IgE were observed (P<0.05). Conclusions Bronchial asthma is immune inflammatory response involved in a variety of cytokines, and the elevated levels of different cytokines can aggravate the lung dysfunction, so monitoring related cytokines is of great significance to determine the occurrence and the development of asthma. Key words: Bronchial asthma; Interleukin-17; Interleukin-4; Interferon-x03B3; Interleukin-33