Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UNIPROT:P05231 (interleukin-6)
 23,907 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The concentrations of endotoxin, interleukin-6 (IL-6) and group II phospholipase-A2 (PLA2-II) were measured in serum or plasma during cytotoxic chemotherapy, fever of unknown origin and sepsis in 56 patients with hematological malignancies and during sepsis and viral infections in 22 non-hematological patients. High concentrations of IL-6, PLA2-II and endotoxin were detected in sepsis, the levels being similarly elevated in hematological and non-hematological patients. The levels of IL-6 and PLA2-II correlated closely with that of C-reactive protein (CRP). The levels of PLA2-II and IL-6 declined earlier than the level of CRP during the course of antimicrobial treatment. The levels of IL-6 also rose earlier than the level of CRP. The ability of IL-6 and PLA2-II and endotoxin to discriminate between sepsis and other causes of fever was comparable to that of CRP. IL-6 and PLA2-II are, together with CRP, valuable tools for the detection of sepsis in patients with hematological malignancies who undergo cytotoxic medication. Endotoxin is not suitable for routine laboratory diagnosis of sepsis.
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PMID:Endotoxin, interleukin-6 and phospholipase-A2 as markers of sepsis in patients with hematological malignancies. 778 12

A patient with Schnitzler's syndrome is described presenting with fever of unknown origin. Although he had all characteristic features of the syndrome (urticarial vasculitis, hyperostosis, lymphadenopathy, fever and serum IgM monoclonal component), it was recognized very late in the diagnostic process. Cytokines were measured to get more insight into the role of cytokines in this syndrome, but only interleukin-6 was elevated. It is important for internists and rheumatologist to recognize this entity in order to prevent unnecessary diagnostic procedures.
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PMID:Schnitzler's syndrome presenting as fever of unknown origin (FUO). The role of cytokines in its systemic features. 944 24

A 52-year-old Japanese man presented with fever spikes, generalized fatigue, anorexia, and anasarca. The patient was referred for the evaluation of fever of unknown origin in association with swelling of cervical, axillary, and inguinal lymph nodes. He also manifested nephrotic syndrome, acute renal failure, hepatosplenomegaly, massive pleural effusion, ascites, disseminated intravascular coagulation, and hypergammaglobulinemia. C-reactive protein was positive and plasma vascular endothelial cell-derived growth factor (VEGF) and serum interleukin-6 levels were markedly elevated. Lymph node biopsy results showed that findings were compatible with Castleman's disease of hyaline vascular type associated with interfollicular plasmacytosis. In conjunction with the clinical findings, a diagnosis of multicentric Castleman's disease was made. The patient underwent renal biopsy because of nephrotic syndrome, and the results showed proliferation of mesangial cells, lobulation of glomeruli, and tram track pattern of the capillary wall without immune complex deposition. Electron microscopy showed widening of the subendothelial space. No electron-dense deposits were present in both mesangial and subendothelial regions. Pathologic features were compatible with glomerular microangiopathy and membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis-like lesions. With corticosteroid therapy, systemic symptoms disappeared; both VEGF and interleukin-6 levels were normalized, and he went into complete remission of nephrotic syndrome. In this article, the role VEGF plays in the pathogenesis of nephrotic syndrome and glomerular microangiopathy is discussed.
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PMID:Multicentric Castleman's disease associated with glomerular microangiopathy and MPGN-like lesion: does vascular endothelial cell-derived growth factor play causative or protective roles in renal injury? 1471 66

Since neutropenic patients with hematological malignancies are at high risk of contracting life-threatening infections, specific markers of infection are needed in cases of febrile neutropenia. The study presented here assessed serum concentrations of C-reactive protein (CRP), procalcitonin (PCT) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) in samples obtained from 31 febrile neutropenic patients. A total of 53 episodes were evaluated, and 18 of these were associated with positive blood culture results. Procalcitonin and IL-6 concentrations differed significantly between bacteremic and non-bacteremic episodes. Procalcitonin values were 0.22 ng/ml [interquartile range (IR), 0.15-1.9] for patients with pneumonia without bacteremia, 0.22 ng/ml (IR, 0.16-0.55) for patients with fever of unknown origin, 0.2 ng/ml (IR, 0.13-0.57) for patients with non-microbial fever and 1.8 ng/ml (IR, 0.35-5.3) for patients with bacteremia. The differences between bacteremic and non-bacteremic episodes had a P-value of 0.003 using the Mann-Whitney test. For IL-6 the median values were 301 pg/ml (IR, 152-1,879) for patients with pneumonia without bacteremia, 207 pg/ml (IR, 94-445) for patients with fever of unknown origin, 177 pg/ml (IR, 142-208) for patients with non-microbial fever and 942 pg/ml (IR, 181-2,807) for patients with bacteremia. Using the Mann-Whitney test, the differences between bacteremic and non-bacteremic episodes were P=0.006. No differences were found in CRP concentrations. Cutoff levels to distinguish between bacteremic and non-bacteremic episodes were chosen using receiver operating characteristic curves: 0.62 ng/ml for PCT and 297 pg/ml for IL-6. Negative predictive values were 84% for PCT and 70% for IL-6. The results indicate that PCT and IL-6 are more reliable markers than CRP for predicting bacteremia in patients with febrile neutropenia.
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PMID:Markers of bacteremia in febrile neutropenic patients with hematological malignancies: procalcitonin and IL-6 are more reliable than C-reactive protein. 1522 17

The aim of the study was to evaluate the ability of procalcitonin, C-reactive protein, serum amyloid A, interleukin-6 and interleukin-8 to predict bacteraemia during the 2 first d of fever in neutropenic patients. A total of 94 febrile neutropenic episodes in 60 patients were studied. Plasma samples were analysed at 10-h intervals from the onset of fever. Clinical events were categorized into 4 groups: 1) bacteraemia caused by other agents than coagulase-negative staphylococci (non-CNS bacteraemia) (n = 21), 2) coagulase-negative staphylococci bacteraemia (n = 15), 3) microbiologically or clinically documented infection without bacteraemia (n = 26) and 4) fever of unknown origin (n = 32). In non-CNS bacteraemia all markers, except for serum amyloid A, showed significantly higher levels compared to patients with fever of unknown origin (p < 0.05). For non-CNS bacteraemia the highest negative predictive value was found for procalcitonin (94%), followed by interleukin-6 (89%), C-reactive protein (88%) and interleukin-8 (87%). Procalcitonin, with a cut-off level of 1.4 ng/ml during 10-20 h after fever onset, showed the highest positive predictive value (67%) for a non-CNS bacteraemia. In conclusion, the value of the analysed markers to predict a non-CNS bacteraemia in neutropenic patients was limited due to low sensitivity and positive predictive value. However, procalcitonin, interleukin-6, C-reactive protein, and interleukin-8 could give useful information for the clinician in excluding a non-CNS bacteraemia.
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PMID:Use of inflammatory markers for early detection of bacteraemia in patients with febrile neutropenia. 1528 82