Cytokine and Chemokine mRNA Expressions After Mycobacterium Tuberculosis-Specific Antigen Stimulation in Whole Blood From Hemodialysis Patients with Latent Tuberculosis Infection

Abstract There have been few reports on the kinetics of hemodialyzed (HD) patients’ immune responses in latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI). Nine cytokines and chemokines were screened through relative mRNA expression levels in whole blood samples after stimulation with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB)-specific antigens from HD patients with LTBI (HD/LTBI), HD patients without LTBI, and healthy individuals and results were compared with QuantiFERON-TB Gold In-Tube (QFT-GIT) test.Only the CCL11 mRNA expression level of the HD/LTBI group was significantly higher than the other two groups (P = 0.028). CCL11 mRNA expression level of the > 0.7 IU/mL group in QFT-GIT test was significantly higher than the < 0.2 IU/mL group in QFT-GIT test and the 0.2-0.7 IU/mL group in QFT-GIT test (P = 0.0043). The present study reveals that the relative mRNA expression of CCL11 was statistically different in LTBI based on the current cut-off value (i.e., ≥ 0.35 IU/mL) and in the > 0.7 IU/mL group. These results suggest that CCL11 might be an alternative biomarker for LTBI diagnosis in HD patients.