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Clinical significance of urinary interleukin-6 in children with reflux nephropathy

J Wang1, R Konda, H Sato

  • 1Department of Urology and Second Department of Internal Medicine, Tohoku University School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan.

The Journal of Urology
|December 23, 2000
PubMed

Insights

Urinary interleukin-6 (IL-6) is elevated in children with reflux nephropathy and correlates with kidney damage. This finding suggests IL-6 may help monitor disease progression in pediatric renal injury.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Nephrology
  • Renal Pathophysiology
  • Biomarker Discovery

Background:

  • Reflux nephropathy is a significant cause of renal scarring in children.
  • Understanding the mechanisms of tubulointerstitial injury is crucial for managing pediatric kidney disease.
  • Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is a pro-inflammatory cytokine implicated in various kidney diseases.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To determine urinary interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels in children with reflux nephropathy.
  • To evaluate the clinical significance of urinary IL-6 in the progression of renal injury.
  • To assess the correlation between urinary IL-6 and markers of kidney damage.

Main Methods:

  • Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to measure urinary IL-6 in 66 children with surgically corrected vesicoureteral reflux and renal scarring.
  • Simultaneous measurement of serum creatinine, beta2-microglobulin, alpha1-microglobulin, urinary alpha1-microglobulin, and albumin.
  • Immunohistochemical analysis of IL-6 expression in scarred kidney tissue from a subset of patients.

Main Results:

  • Urinary IL-6 levels were significantly higher in children with severe bilateral renal scarring compared to those with mild scarring and controls.
  • Urinary IL-6 showed significant positive correlations with serum alpha1-microglobulin, beta2-microglobulin, creatinine, and urinary albumin.
  • Histological evaluation indicated predominant IL-6 expression in tubules within and adjacent to fibrotic areas.

Conclusions:

  • Tubular interleukin-6 (IL-6) expression may play a role in the pathogenesis of tubulointerstitial injury in reflux nephropathy.
  • Urinary IL-6 emerges as a potential non-invasive biomarker for monitoring the progression of reflux nephropathy in children.
Abstract

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