Type 1 diabetes is associated with increased cyclooxygenase- and cytokine-mediated inflammation

The extent of involvement of cyclooxygenase (COX)-mediated inflammation in type 1 diabetes is unknown, and the association between the COX- and cytokine-mediated inflammatory responses in type 1 diabetes is not fully understood.

Plasma high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (CRP), 24-h urinary and plasma 15-keto-dihydro-prostaglandin F(2alpha) (a metabolite of prostaglandin F(2alpha) [PGF(2alpha)] and an indicator of COX-mediated inflammation), serum amyloid protein A (SAA), and interleukin (IL)-6 (indicators of inflammation) were measured in 38 subjects with type 1 diabetes and 41 healthy age- and sex-matched control subjects.

The inflammatory indicators (urinary 15-keto-dihydro-PGF(2alpha), P < 0.01; IL-6, P < 0.04) were increased in men with diabetes. CRP and SAA did not show any significant difference between the diabetic and the control subjects. Urinary levels of 15-keto-dihydro-PGF(2alpha) correlated with the degree of glycemic control, HbA(1c) (r = 0.42, P < 0.0005). No correlation was found between the duration of diabetes and the inflammatory biomarkers or metabolic measurements.

These results suggest that an early low-grade inflammatory process reflected by elevated levels of PGF(2alpha) and IL-6 is involved in type 1 diabetes. Thus, both COX- and cytokine-mediated inflammatory pathways are significantly related to type 1 diabetes.