Immune response during interferon beta-1b treatment in patients with multiple sclerosis who experienced relapses and

Suhayl Dhib-Jalbut1, Sumandeep Sumandeep, Reuben Valenzuela

  • 1UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA. jalbutsu@umdnj.edu

Journal of Neuroimmunology
|September 25, 2012
PubMed

We measured immune markers in subjects with multiple sclerosis (MS) treated with IFNβ-1b for 12 months. IL-17 levels were significantly higher at Month 6 (p=0.036) in relapsing subjects while BDNF levels were significantly higher at Month 3 (p=0.028) in relapse-free subjects. Change from baseline in IL-4 levels inversely correlated with disability score whereas change from baseline in IL-10/IFN-gamma ratio inversely correlated with occurrence of relapses. CXCR3+CD8+ T-cells tended to be higher but declined with treatment in relapse-free compared with relapsing subjects. Findings show the potential of cytokine and neurotrophic factors as biomarkers of clinical response to IFNβ-1b.