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Cell-associated interleukin-8 in cord blood of term and preterm infants
J Dembinski1, D Behrendt, A Heep
1Department of Neonatalogy, Center of Pediatrics, University of Bonn, Bonn D-53113, Germany. jdembinski@uni-bonn.de
Insights
Interleukin-8 (IL-8) levels in whole cord blood, not serum, indicate neonatal inflammation from labor stress. Whole blood IL-8 may aid early diagnosis of neonatal infection.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal immunology
- Biomarkers of inflammation
- Perinatal medicine
Background:
- Interleukin-8 (IL-8) is a key cytokine in inflammatory responses.
- Assessing IL-8 in neonates is crucial for understanding responses to labor and infection.
- Cord blood IL-8 levels may reflect the intrauterine and perinatal environment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the impact of gestational age and labor on IL-8 concentrations in neonatal whole cord blood and serum.
- To compare IL-8 levels in whole blood versus serum.
- To determine the utility of whole blood IL-8 as a diagnostic marker for neonatal infection.
Main Methods:
- IL-8 levels were measured in cord blood serum and whole blood lysate from 134 infants.
- Infants were categorized by gestational age (term/preterm) and infection status.
- Analysis of variance was used to assess the effects of labor and gestational age.
Main Results:
- IL-8 was frequently undetectable in serum but measurable in all whole blood samples.
- Whole blood IL-8 concentrations were higher in term infants compared to preterm infants.
- IL-8 levels increased in infected infants post-labor, suggesting a proinflammatory response evident in whole blood.
Conclusions:
- Neonatal proinflammatory response to labor stress is better reflected in whole blood IL-8 than serum IL-8.
- Whole blood IL-8 levels correlate with proinflammatory stimulation in neonates.
- Whole blood IL-8 may serve as a valuable tool for early neonatal infection diagnosis.
Abstract:
To assess the effect of gestational age and labor on the interleukin-8 (IL-8) concentration in whole cord blood and serum, IL-8 levels were determined simultaneously in cord blood serum and lysate in 134 infants. Following the elimination of some of the samples due to exclusion criteria, the data for 99 uninfected infants (71 term and 28 preterm) and 9 infants with neonatal bacterial infection delivered either vaginally or by elective or emergency cesarean section were analyzed. The effects of labor and gestational age were tested by analysis of variance. IL-8 was not detectable in the serum of 25 infants, whereas IL-8 levels in whole blood were measurable in all of the samples. The median IL-8 conncentrations in whole cord blood lysate were 106 pg/ml (range, 20 to 415 pg/ml) in preterm infants and 176 pg/ml (range, 34 to 1,667 pg/ml) in term infants. In contrast to the IL-8 levels in serum, IL-8 levels in whole blood were reduced after ECS. Gestational age had no independent effect on the IL-8 concentrations in either serum or whole blood; these concentrations increased in infected infants after labor. We conclude that the neonatal proinflammatory response to labor stress was more evident in the concentrations of IL-8 in whole blood than in serum. The levels of IL-8 in whole-blood lysate reflect proinflammatory stimulation in neonates and may be a useful diagnostic tool for the early diagnosis of neonatal infection.