Serum levels of IL-17, IL-4, and INFγ in Serbian patients with early rheumatoid arthritis

Background: rheumatoid arthritis (ra) is a chronic, systemic, inflammatory disease with autoimmune etiology, characterized by synovial inflammation and destruction of joint cartilage and bone. there are controversial data about the profile of interleukin-17 (il-17a), interleukin-4 (il-4), and interferon-gamma (infγ), indicating in some studies the key role of il-17, while in others the th1 cytokines. materials and methods: serum samples of 31 early ra patients were evaluated for erythrocytes sedimentation rate (esr), rheumatoid factor (rf), c-reactive protein (crp), anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies (anti-ccp), and for the tested cytokines (il-17a, il-4, and infγ). disease activity score (das28) calculation was done for all patients. control serum samples were obtained from 29 healthy volunteers. results: the levels of tested cytokines were significantly higher (il-17a, p < 0.001; infγ, p < 0.001; il-4, p < 0.01) in patients with early ra, compared to the healthy controls. in early ra patients, a strong correlation of serum il-17a was found with das28, esr, and crp. also, significant negative correlation was found between serum infγ levels and the das28 score, indicating that infγ may play a key role in maintaining immune homeostasis in patients with ra. conclusion: the mean serum il-17a levels in patients with early ra, corresponded with the disease activity and severity. this might highlight the usefulness of the serum il-17a level in defining the activity and predictive patterns, for aggressive disease therapy, and it might express specific therapeutically targets.