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. 2016 Sep;30(5):736-40.
doi: 10.1002/jcla.21930. Epub 2016 Apr 18.

Serum Thymosin β4 Concentrations in Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome Patients

Yongquan Liu  1 , Meijuan Liu  2 , Youkui Shi  3 , Yuan Liu  1
Affiliations

Serum Thymosin β4 Concentrations in Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome Patients

Yongquan Liu et al. J Clin Lab Anal. 2016 Sep.

Abstract

Objective: Inflammation is a potential mechanism of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS). Thymosin β4, a member of thymic protein family, exhibits an anti-inflammatory effect. We determine to investigate whether serum thymosin β4 concentrations is correlated with the occurrence and disease severity of OSAS.

Methods: Serum thymosin β4 concentrations were examined in a cross-sectional population including 158 patients with OSAS and 94 healthy subjects.

Results: Elevated serum thymosin β4 concentrations were found in OSAS patients than the controls. Multivariable logistic regression analysis indicated a significant association between serum thymosin β4 concentrations and OSAS development. Severe OSAS patients showed increased serum thymosin β4 concentrations compared with mild and moderate patients. Spearman correlation analysis suggested that serum thymosin β4 concentrations were correlated with the severity of OSAS. Simple linear regression analyses showed that serum thymosin β4 in OSAS patients was correlated with homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance, apnea hypopnea index, disease severity, and osteoarthritis development. Then multiple stepwise regression analysis showed that only disease severity remained to be associated with serum thymosin β4.

Conclusions: Serum thymosin β4 concentrations were correlated with the occurrence and severity of OSAS.

Keywords: inflammation; obstructive sleep apnea syndrome; thymosin β4.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Serum thymosin β4 concentrations in mild, moderate, and severe OSAS patients. Severe OSAS patients showed significantly elevated serum thymosin β4 concentrations compared with mild and moderate OSAS patients. In addition, moderate OSAS patients had significantly higher serum thymosin β4 concentrations compared with mild OSAS patients.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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