Elevated Serum Levels of IL-6 and TNF-α in Patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Introduction: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is accompanied by abdominal pain and intestinal discomforts. A line of evidence shows that the immune system plays important roles in the pathogenesis of the disease. Two main cytokines directing the immune system are IL-6 and TNF-α which may play a role in the immunopathogenesis of this disease. The present study aimed at investigating the serum levels of these cytokines in patients suffering from IBS.   Materials & Methods: This comparative case-control study was conducted on 40 patients suffering from IBS (case group) and 40 people who were affected by the symptoms of gastrointestinal disorders but not suffering from IBS (control group). The serum levels of TNF-α and IL-6 cytokines were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The amount of the above-mentioned cytokines was compared using independent-t-test in both groups. Ethics code: EC/92/H/132   Findings: The results showed significantly higher levels of IL-6 and TNF-α in IBS patients, compared to those in the control group (P=0.0001). According to the results obtained from the Spearman rank correlation coefficient, there was a strong correlation between the serum levels of IL-6 (Ρ=0.799, P=0.000) and TNF-α (Ρ=0.788, P=0.000) cytokines with IBS development.   Discussion & Conclusions: This study shows that serum levels of TNF-α and IL-6 cytokines are significantly higher in the case group with IBS. Moreover, there is an association between serum levels of IL-6 and TNF-α with the pathogenesis of IBS.