[Interleukin I activity and prostaglandin E2 content in peripheral blood monocytes in patients with colorectal...

Immunoregulatory function of peripheral blood monocytes was studied in 20 patients with colorectal cancer, by assaying interleukin 1 (IL-1) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) in the culture supernatant of lipopolysaccharide-stimulated monocytes. The results showed that IL-1 activity of the monocyte culture supernatant was decreased in the preoperative patients, compared with that of controls or postoperative groups; the PGE2 content of the culture supernatant of monocytes from the preoperative cases was increased, compared to normal controls or to the postoperative groups. Again, we found that there was significant negative correlation between IL-1 activity and the PGE2 content, with the activity of IL-1 the lowest and the content of PGE2 the highest in advanced colonic cancer patients.