Cytokines and Chemokines as Biomarkers of Community-Acquired Bacterial Infection

Routinely used biomarkers of bacterial etiology of infection, such as C-reactive protein and procalcitonin, have limited usefulness for evaluation of infections since their expression is enhanced by a number of different conditions. Therefore, several inflammatory cytokines and chemokines were analyzed with sera from patients hospitalized for moderate bacterial and viral infectious diseases. In total, 57 subjects were enrolled: 21 patients with community-acquired bacterial infections, 26 patients with viral infections, and 10 healthy subjects (control cohorts). The laboratory analyses were performed using Luminex technology, and the following molecules were examined: IL-1Ra, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-8, TNF-alpha, INF-gamma, MIP-1 beta, and MCP-1. Bacterial etiology of infection was associated with significantly (P < 0.001) elevated serum concentrations of IL-1Ra, IL-2, IL-6, and TNF-alpha in comparison to levels observed in the sera of patients with viral infections. In the patients with bacterial infections, IL-1Ra and IL-8 demonstrated positive correlation with C-reactive protein, whereas, IL-1Ra, TNF-alpha, and MCP-1 correlated with procalcitonin. Furthermore, elevated levels of IL-1Ra, IL-6, and TNF-alpha decreased within 3 days of antibiotic therapy to levels observed in control subjects. The results show IL-1Ra as a potential useful biomarker of community-acquired bacterial infection.