Increased levels of IL-17A in patients with fibromyalgia

Abstract

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the plasma levels of IL-17A in fibromyalgia patients, and to look for any correlations between this data and the concentrations of some pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines.

Methods: We performed a study including 58 fibromyalgia patients and 39 healthy women matched for age and body mass index. The plasma levels of IL-17A and other pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines were measured by using the technique of cytometric bead array (CBA). The analysis of differences between groups was performed using Mann-Whitney test and the analysis of the correlations by Spearman's correlation test.

Results: The analyses showed that fibromyalgia patients present increased levels of IL-17A. They also revealed that plasma concentrations of IL17A positively correlate with levels of IL-2, IL-4 and IL-10, TNF and IFNγ.

Conclusions: As far as we are aware, this is the first study to demonstrate increased levels of IL17A in fibromyalgia patients. The positive correlation between the levels of IL-17A and of other cytokines strengthens the hypothesis of the involvement of inflammatory mechanisms in the development of this syndrome.