Background: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disorder that involves autoantibodies attacking and weakening joints. RA is characterized by leukocyte (Monocyte, Lymphocyte mast cell .etc) infiltrations into the synovial compartment leading to inflammation in the synovial membrane. Synovitis leads to the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines, matrix metalloproteinases, chemokines, complement proteins, and growth factors. Objective: The current study pointed to verify the diagnostic values of interleukin -17 A and interleukin -18 in Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and the effect of treatment thereon. Study subjects and methods: A total of 88 samples with RA were selected from the health clinics of AL-Yarmouk teaching hospital/rheumatology clinic in Baghdad, with female rheumatoid arthritis patients as the patient group (50) and (38) healthy females as the control group. All patients were exposed to clinical, laboratory, and ultrasound assessments, besides measuring the serum level of both (IL-17A and IL-18) by the method of Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results: The results show that there is a significant difference (p≤0.05) in IL-17A levels between patients and controls. The concentration of IL-17A in premenopausal patients is higher when compared to control groups (18.06 ± 3.85 vs 15.71 ± 1.82 pg/ml), so, the concentration in postmenopausal studied groups (17.19 ± 2.91 vs 14.13 ± 1.06 pg/ml). Also, there are significant differences (p≤0.05) in the level of IL-18 between the patients and the control; it is found that the level of IL-18 within the premenopausal patients was higher compared to the control (16.09 ± 9.69 vs 12.52 ± 8.30 pg/ml). Conclusion: A High level of IL-17A in RA patients contributes to the pathogenesis of RA as an inflammatory disease. As well as, the elevated levels of IL-18 suggest its physiological role to induce inflammatory disorder Treatment with (MTX and Etanercept) causes a decrease in the inflammatory markers of this disease RF in patient groups.
The present study was set to demonstrate the prevalence of toxoplasmosis infection and its effects on patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) through determining their serum levels of anti-dsDNA and IL-18 antibodies. For this purpose, the sera from 132 SLE and/or toxoplasmosis patients and 30 healthy women, were collected. The study sample was divided into four groups of SLE, toxoplasmosis, SLE coinfected with toxoplasmosis, and healthy control. Anti-Toxoplasma IgG antibodies were examined for all the samples using ELISA kit. The results showed a high mean level of anti-Toxoplasma IgG among SLE patients coinfected with toxoplasmosis (104.8792±12.31585pg/ml) in comparison to that in toxoplasmosis patients (91.1705±12.577
... Show MoreRheumatoid arthritis (RA) is characterized by persistent joint inflammation, which is a defining feature of this chronic inflammatory condition. Considerable advancements have been made in the field of disease-modifying anti-rheumatic medicines (DMARDs), which effectively mitigate inflammation and forestall further joint deterioration. Anti-tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) drugs, which are a class of biological DMARDs (bDMARDs), have been efficaciously employed in the treatment of RA in recent times Adalimumab, a TNF inhibitor, has demonstrated significant efficacy in reducing disease symptoms and halting disease progression in patients with RA. However, its use is associated with major side effects and high costs. In addition,
... Show MoreBreast cancer is the second most common cancer in women world. Multiple Cytokines appear to have a dominant role in human breast cancer formation. Estimation of the in situ expression of IL-6 and IL-1β in breast cancer patients. A sixty patients with breast cancer BC were divided into two clinical subgroups, (30) with malignant breast cancer MBC and (30) with benign breast tumor as a control group according to histological examination. In situ hybridization technique used for detection of IL-6 and IL-1β mRNA sequence in two groups. The results showed that percentages of mRNA expression of IL-6 and IL-1β were in (≥ 11-50%) for malignant breast cancer. This research also investigated that (73.3%) of beni
... Show MoreAnkylosing spondylitis (AS) represents one kind of advanced arthritis formed via inflammatory stimuli long-term in the spin‘s joints. Interleukin (IL)-29 (interferon- lambda1(IFN- λ1)), interleukin (IL)-28A (interferon- lambda 2 (IFN- λ2)) and interleukin (IL)-28B (interferon- lambda 3(IFN-λ3)) are three interferon lambda (IFN- λs) molecules that have recently been identified as new members of the IFN family. IL-28B expression in ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is not well understood. 150 male healthy controls ((HC) and 160 males with AS as patients group participated in this study. Serum level and gene polymorphism were assessed using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and Sanger sequencing for IL-28B, respectively. The results showed
... Show MoreThe mean age of AS patients was (35.0 ± 9.8) years.When the patients and control subjects were divided into different age groups (>40, 30-40, <30 years), the differences were not significantin terms of disease prevalence. The results also showed that the percentage of male patients is higher than that of females. There was no significant difference (P?0.05) between patients and controls in the distribution of males and females.Most of the patients had the disease for a period of 5 years or higher, with a disease severity of ? 2.1 and functional disability degree of I, II. The resultsshoweddifferent patterns of distribution for the three tested cytokines. A significant increase in the level of TNF-?, anon-significantincrease i
... Show MoreRheumatoid arthritis is an inflammatory chronic disease with an autoimmune pathogenesis. To determine the role of Helicobacter pylori as a trigger agent, twenty five patients with rheumatoid arthritis of ages (15-47) years have been investigated and compared with twenty healthy individuals. All the studied groups were carried out to measure the rheumatoid arthritis (RA) IgM, anti-CCP antibody IgG and IgA by ELISA test and by measured anti-IgG antibody level of H. pylori by using ELISA and IFAT techniques. The present study showed significant differences (P< 0.05) of anti-H. Pylori in sera of RA patients than control group, this lead to suggest that H. pylori had a role in pathogenesis of RA.
Hashimoto Thyroiditis (HT) is the most common autoimmune thyroid disease and the commonest cause ofhypothyroidism. C-reactive protein (CRP) is synthesized in hepatocyte in response to autoimmune disorders;strongly induced by IL-6. This study aimed to estimate serum IL-6 and CRP levels in autoimmune and non-autoimmune hypothyroidism. The present study included 60 Iraqi female hypothyroid patients divided to 30autoimmune and 30 non-autoimmune, with age ranged between 24-50 years and 30 healthy controls withage ranged between 27-52 years. Serum samples were collected from study groups. The levels of thyroidhormones (TSH, T4 and T3) were determined by using automated Chemiluminescence Immunoassay (CLIA)analysis system. Detection the levels of t
... Show MoreIntroduction and Aim: The pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-39, a member of the IL-12 family plays a key role in the inflammatory response by modulating immune cell activity and inflammation. A literature search shows no study undertaken for the effect of IL-39's on arthritis so far. Hence, the purpose of this study was to investigate the role of IL-39 in rheumatoid arthritis. Materials and Methods: This study involved 80 patients with rheumatoid arthritis registered at the Rheumatology Clinic at Baghdad teaching hospital. The patients were divided into three groups based on treatments received. Group 1 included patients who were not on any treatment for arthritis, Group 2 with patients on hydroxychloroquine and or prednisone treatment,
... Show MoreObjective: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients have increased morbidity and mortality from premature cardiovascular (CV) disease (CVD). Framingham risk score (FRS) is a simplified coronary prediction tool developed to enable clinicians to assess the risk of a cardiovascular event and to identify candidate patients for risk factors modifications worldwide. The predictive ability of the FRS varies between populations, ethnic groups, and socio-economic status. The aim of this study is to find if there is any correlation between the Framingham risk score and the inflammatory and biochemical parameters used to measure disease activity and functional ability in Iraqi patients with active RA.