Abstract
Purpose: :
To analyze the cytokine profile in tears of patients with seasonal allergic conjunctivitis and patients with infectious conjunctivitis.
Methods: :
Tears from patients with seasonal allergic conjunctivitis (SAC) (n=21), acute non-allergic infectious conjunctivitis (n=14), and healthy volunteers (n=10) were collected via plastic micropipettes and analyzed for cytokines L-1ß, IL-2, IL-4, IL-5, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IL-12 (p70), IL-13, IFN , MCP-1, RANTES and TNFα via the Beadlyte® Human Multi-Cytokine Detection System 4 and Luminex® multiplex cytokine profiling system. The study was independently reviewed and approved by the ethical board of the Medical University of Vienna, Austria.
Results: :
Compared to healthy controls, subjects with SAC showed higher concentrations for CCL5, Eotaxin, IL1b, IL4,IL5,IL6,IL8,IL13,VEGF and lower concentrations for IL12p70, MCP-1,MIP1a . Subjects with non-allergic conjunctivitis produced higher levels of CCL5, IFNg, IL10, IL13, IL1b, IL4, IL5, IL6, IL8, MCP-1,MIP1a,TNFa and reduced levels of IL12p40,IL12p70,Il17,IL2,IL7,VEGF, when compared to healthy controls. Concentrations of CCL5,IFNg, IL13,IL2, IL4,IL7 and VEGF in tears of allergic and non-allergic patients differed to a significant degree.
Conclusions: :
Multiplex bead-based assays are convenient for cytokine/chemokine detection in tears. Our data indicate different cytokine profiles for SAC, non-SAC subjects and healthy volunteers. Cytokine profiling from tears could help in the differential diagnosis of conjunctivitis of unknown etiology and in the understanding of ocular surface pathophysiology.