Quantitative analysis of circulating DNA in plasma of patients with acute pancreatitis and its potential clinical value

Abstract

Objective To quantitatively detect the circulating DNA in plasma of patients with acute pancreatitis and to evaluate its potential clinical values. Methods Blood samples collected from 40 patients with mild acute pancreatitis (MAP), 20 with severe acute pancreatitis (SAP) and 50healthy controls were extracted for DNA using genomic DNA extraction kit. The DNA level was detected by real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR assay. The clinical association of DNA level with acute pancreatitis was analyzed. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was set up. Results The median concentration of plasma DNA in SAP group was 24.84 ng/ml, which was significantly higher than that in MAP group (7.60 ng/ml, P=0.006) and the healthy controls (5.23 ng/ml, P=0.000). The median concentration of plasma DNA in patients with acute pancreatitis was higher than in healthy controls (P=0.006), however, there was no significant difference between MAP group and healthy controls (P=0.322).The area under the ROC curve performed by the plasma DNA from SAP and MAP groups was 0. 881(95% CI, 0.773-0.989). With a cutoff value of 11.20 ng/ml, the overall sensitivity was 19/20% and specificity was 72.5%. Plasma DNA level was found to be associated with APACHE-Ⅱ score (P=0.001), Ranson score (P=0. 013), serum Ca2+ level (P=0.000), and c-reactive protein levels (P=0.001). Conclusions Plasma DNA is correlated with the extent of pancreatitis. It can be used in monitoring the development of acute pancreatitis and may be a potential marker for early diagnosis of SAP. Key words: Pancreatitis,acute necrotizing; Polymerase chain reaction; DNA