Cytokine Profile in Patients with Progressive Multiple Sclerosis and Its Association with Disease Progression and Disability

Inflammation is the driving force for brain injury in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). The objective of the present study is to delineate the serum cytokine profile in patients with progressive MS in a Southern Brazilian population compared with healthy controls and patients with relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) and its associations with disease progression and disability. We included 32 patients with progressive MS, 126 with RRMS, and 40 healthy controls. The patients were evaluated using the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with gadolinium. Serum interleukin (IL)-1 beta, IL-6, IL-12, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha, interferon (IFN)-gamma, IL-10, IL-4, and IL-17 levels were assessed using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. IL-1 beta, IL-6, TNF-alpha, IFN-gamma, IL-17, IL-4, and IL-10 levels were higher in progressive MS than in controls. Increased IL-1 beta and IFN-gamma and decreased IL-12 and IL-4 levels were found in progressive MS compared with RRMS. Patients with progressive MS with disease progression presented higher TNF-alpha, IFN-gamma, and IL-10 levels than those without disease progression. Patients with progressive MS with disease progression showed a higher frequency of positive gadolinium-enhanced lesions in MRI; higher TNF-alpha, IFN-gamma, and IL-17 levels; and decreased IL-12 levels compared with RRMS patients with progression. There was a significant inverse correlation between IL-10 levels and EDSS score in patients with progressive MS. The results underscore the complex cytokine network imbalance exhibited by progressive MS patients and show the important involvement of TNF-alpha, IFN-gamma, and IL-17 in the pathophysiology and progression of the disease. Moreover, serum IL-10 levels were inversely associated with disability in patients with progressive MS.