Presentation of cytokine profile in relation to oxidative stress parameters in patients with severe COVID-19: a case-control pilot study

Abstract

<ns3:p><ns3:bold>Introduction: </ns3:bold>COVID-19 can be worsened by hyper-production of cytokines accompanied by increased level of oxidative stress. The aim of this study was to investigate the correlation between a set of cytokines and the markers of the oxidative stress.</ns3:p><ns3:p> <ns3:bold>Methods: </ns3:bold>The levels of cytokines IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL8, IL-10, VEGF, IFN-γ, TNF-α, IL-1α, MCP-1 and EGF were determined by using High Sensitivity Evidence Investigator™ Biochip Array technology. The oxidative stress parameters (d-ROM, PAT, OS index) were measured in serum on FRAS5 analytical photometric system.</ns3:p><ns3:p> <ns3:bold>Results: </ns3:bold>IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, VEGF, MCP-1 and EGF were significantly higher (p<0.05) in the patients with severe COVID-19 with increased levels of IL-2, IFN-y, TNF-α and IL-1α. The d-ROM, OS index, and PAT were significantly higher (p<0.05) in severe COVID-19 patients. IL-6 demonstrated the strongest correlation with all of the markers of the oxidative stress, d-ROM (r=0.9725, p=0.0001), PAT (r=0.5000, p=0.0001) and OS index (r=0.9593, p=0.012). Similar behavior was evidenced between IFN-y and d-ROM (r=0.4006, p=0.0001), PAT (r=0.6030, p=0.0001) and OS index (r=0.4298, p=0.012).</ns3:p><ns3:p> <ns3:bold>Conclusion: </ns3:bold>The oxidative stress markers show good correlation with the tested cytokines which can be measured at the beginning of the disease in a primary care setting to predict the course of COVID-19.</ns3:p>