Serum levels of IL-12, TGFbeta1 and IgE in children with asthma]

This study examined the changes of serum levels of interleukin 12 ( IL-12), transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGFbeta 1) and immunoglobulin E ( IgE) in children with asthma as well as the correlation of IL-12 and TGFbeta 1 with IgE in order to investigate their roles in asthma.Serum levels of IL-12 , TGFbeta 1 and IgE were detected using ELISA in 85 asthmatic children at the acute and the remission stages. Thirty healthy children served as control group.Compared with the control group, serum IL-12 and TGFbeta 1 levels were significantly lower and serum IgE levels were significantly higher in the asthmatic group through the acute to the remission stages. Serum IL-12 and TGFbeta 1 levels (40.42+/-15.26 ng/L and 65.41+/-22.38 pg/mL) significantly increased in the asthmatic group at the remission stage compared with those at the acute stage (28.42+/-10.73 ng/L and 40.25+/-11.73 pg/mL) (P<0.01), but remained lower levels than those in the control group (67.42+/-20.58 ng/L and 178.54+/-90.56 pg/mL) (P<0.01). The asthmatic patients at the remission stage showed significantly decreased serum IgE levels (145.67 +/-51.25 IU/mL) compared with those at the acute stage (280.35 +/-80.54 IU/mL) (P<0.01), but the IgE level in the remission stage was obviously higher than in the control group (53.61+/-13.32 IU/mL) (P<0.01). Serum IL-12 and TGFbeta 1 levels were negatively correlated with serum IgE level in asthmatic children.There might be an imbalance in serum IL-12, TGFbeta 1 and IgE levels in asthmatic children. IL-12, TGFbeta 1 and IgE may play an important role in the pathogenesis of asthma. They may be useful in the diagnosis and severity evaluation of asthma.