Role of inflammatory mediators (TNF-α, IL-6, CRP), biochemical and hematological parameters in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients of Kashmir, India

Background: Type II Diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a multifactorial disease and a leading cause of premature deaths. Inflammatory cytokines are reported that they have potential to enhance insulin resistance and hence T2DM. Assessment of immunological profile in T2DM patients of Kashmir valley is unclear. So, detection of cytokines is relevant to determine the extent and direction of immune responses. The current research was taken to study the role of inflammatory mediators in T2DM along with insulin sensitivity, biochemical and hematological parameters in mountainous valley of Kashmiri population.    Methods: A total of 340 subjects were selected in this study among them 160 were T2DM cases and 180 were healthy controls. Serum expression of  inflammatory mediators  (TNF-α and IL-6 ) were quantified by ELISA technique, WBC count was measured on Sysmax (Germany) hematology analyzer, biochemical and Immunoassay parameters were done on Abbott c4000 (USA) and Abbott C1000 (USA) fully automatic analyzer. Data was analyzed using statistical ‘software SPSS 16.1’ (Chicago, IL). For all assessments, p<0.05 were considered statistically significant.    Results: The expressions of candidate cytokines (TNF-α, IL-6, CRP, and WBC) were highly significant (p<0.001) in T2DM. Among inflammatory mediators, TNF-α shows a positive correlation (p<0.001) with glycemic profile and insulin sensitivity in T2DM cases in comparison with healthy normal. Biochemical (fasting sugar, HbA1c, insulin resistance, lipid profile) and anthropometric (BMI) parameters were highly significant (p<0.001) in T2DM cases as compared to non-diabetic normal.    Conclusion: Low grade inflammation and up regulation of inflammatory mediators has been purported to play a significant role in pathogenesis of T2DM. Our findings confirm that positive correlation of TNF-α and IL-6 with T2DM and insulin sensitivity. These can act as early prediction biomarkers of T2DM. Further studies on wider range of pro and anti- inflammatory cytokines i.e. mediators, in association with other biochemical, immunoassay and hematological parameters are needed to help clinicians manage and treat T2DM effectively.