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Plasma interleukin-6 and executive function in crack cocaine-dependent women
Mateus Luz Levandowski1, Adriana Raquel Binsfeld Hess2, Rodrigo Grassi-Oliveira1
1Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience Lab (DCNL), Post-Graduate Program in Psychology, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil; Laboratory of Immunosenescence, Institute of Biomedical Research, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
Aim:
The aim of this study was to investigate the association between plasma interleukin 6 (IL-6) levels and executive function (EF) in crack cocaine-dependent women.
Methods:
42 crack cocaine-dependent women (CRACK) and 52 healthy women (CONTROL) were evaluated with respect to EF using the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST). Plasma IL-6 levels were quantitatively determined using the multiplexed cytometric bead assay.
Results:
The CRACK group had poor performance on WSCT scores (Non-perseverative Errors and Percent Conceptual Level Responses) and higher plasma IL-6 levels when compared with the CONTROL group. Furthermore, IL-6 was correlated with worsening of several WCST sub-scores and a linear regression model showed that IL-6 levels predicted worse cognitive flexibility within the CRACK group independently of intelligence quotient and education.
Conclusions:
The results of this study indicated that low performances in EF task are associated with higher IL-6 levels in crack cocaine-dependent women. These data bolster previous works that link the cognitive decline observed in drug addicts with mechanisms of inflammation.
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