Abstract
Objective: Cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated antigen-4 (CTLA-4) involved in down-regulation of T-cell response, T-cell homeostasis, which plays a role in COPD. The present study aimed to detect the serum level of CTLA-4 in COPD and its relation with systemic inflammation and lung function.Method: 42 COPD patients and 30 controls were recruited, serum was separated immediately and stored at -80° until analysis. Serum CTLA-4 and C-reactive protein (CRP) were analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results: The clinical characteristics and levels of CTLA-4, CRP of included subjects were listed in Table 1.
Characteristics of included subjects
The mean levels of serum CTLA-4 were significantly elevated in COPD patients when compared to controls (35.29±19.60 vs. 24.94±15.09 pg/ml, p < 0.05). Levels of CRP, were also increased in COPD patients (19.06±5.72 vs. 15.46±5.99 ng/ml, p < 0.05). Regression correlation analysis showed serum CTLA-4 levels were inversely correlated with forced expiratory volume at 1 second (FEV1% predicted) (r=-0.340, p=0.028), while positively correlated with CRP (r=0.434, p=0.004) in COPD group.Conclusion: Serum level of CTLA-4 is higher in COPD patients than controls, and are related with systemic inflammation and disease severity in COPD. These findings suggest circulating CTLA-4 maybe involved in COPD.
- © 2013 ERS
