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Updated: Jun 26, 2026

An Intravital Microscopy-Based Approach to Assess Intestinal Permeability and Epithelial Cell Shedding Performance
Published on: December 3, 2020
Concentrations of alpha- and beta-defensins in plasma of patients with inflammatory bowel disease
N Yamaguchi1, H Isomoto, H Mukae
1Second Department of Internal Medicine, Nagasaki University School of Medicine, Nagasaki, Japan.
Background:
Impaired production/release of defensins, representative endogenous antimicrobial peptides, is associated with the pathogenesis of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
Material And Methods:
Employing in house radioimmunoassay, we examined concentrations of the major forms alpha-defensins, human neutrophil peptides (HNP) 1-3 and human beta-defensin (HBD)-2 in plasma of 55 IBD patients consisting of 29 patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) and 26 with Crohn's disease (CD) and 57 controls.
Results:
The circulating HNP 1-3, but not HBD-2, levels in IBD patients were significantly higher than those in controls. Plasma HNP 1-3 concentrations in CD patients significantly correlated with Crohn's disease activity index, peripheral white blood cell counts, serum CRP values and TNF-alpha levels.
Conclusions:
Elevation of circulating alpha-defensins levels is suggestive of their physiopathological roles in IBD. Plasma HNP 1-3 concentrations may be an indicator for CD activity and their association with CRP and TNF-alpha supports a possible association with the inflammatory process.
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