Abstract
Background: The role of cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in the pathogenesis of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has been recently suggested. The aim of this study was to analyze circulating cfDNA and deoxyribonuclease (DNase) activity in IBD patients in clinical remission.Materials and Methods: Plasma and serum were obtained from 72 patients with Crohn's disease and 28 patients with ulcerative colitis. Total cfDNA, nuclear DNA (ncDNA), mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and DNase activity were measured.Results: IBD patients showed higher levels of both ncDNA and mtDNA compared to healthy controls. Concentration of ncDNA was higher in males compared to females, including patients and healthy controls. However, unlike males higher amount of ncDNA was found in female IBD patients compared to healthy controls. DNase activity was significantly lower in male IBD patients compared with healthy controls. In addition, there was a negative correlation between DNase activity and ncDNA levels in male IBD patients.Conclusions: Herein we present increased amount of circulating ncDNA and mtDNA in IBD patients in clinical remission. Thus, unlike total cfDNA, circulating ncDNA and mtDNA might not represent the optimal biomarkers of disease activity. This is also the first report on sex difference in circulating ncDNA levels, possibly associated with lower DNase activity in males.
Highlights
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a group of multifactorial, autoimmune disorders with multifactorial etiology, which includes Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC)
The aim of this study was to analyze the concentrations of circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA) and the activity of DNase in IBD patients in clinical remission and look for potential sex differences
IBD patients showed higher levels of both ncDNA and mtDNA compared to healthy controls (C: p = 0.0061 and E: p = 0.0387)
Summary
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a group of multifactorial, autoimmune disorders with multifactorial etiology, which includes Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC). The role of cell-free nucleic acids and their clinical relevance in IBD has been recently reviewed by Kubiritova et al [3]. To this date, a number of animal studies have proved the role of cfDNA in IBD. CfDNA is able to bind to toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9) and activate the pathway leading to inflammatory responses. This designates cfDNA a potential marker of inflammation. The role of cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in the pathogenesis of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has been recently suggested. The aim of this study was to analyze circulating cfDNA and deoxyribonuclease (DNase) activity in IBD patients in clinical remission
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