Table 4.
Comparison of Serum Cytokines among the Four Study Groups
| Cytokine* (pg/ml) | Obese with Asthma (n = 39) | Normal Weight with Asthma (n = 39) | Obese without Asthma (n = 39) | Healthy Control Subjects (n = 36) | P Values |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IFN-γ | 0.47 ± 0.89 | 0.27 ± 0.81 | 0.77 ± 0.98 | 0.64 ± 1.01 | A 0.007 |
| O 0.27 | |||||
| A-O 0.87 | |||||
| TNF | 0.60 ± 0.46** | 0.29 ± 0.44**#^ | 0.56 ± 0.22# | 0.65 ± 0.43^ | A 0.008 |
| O 0.08 | |||||
| A-O 0.009 | |||||
| IL-2 | 0.06 ± 0.52 | −0.16 ± 0.30# | 0.16 ± 0.55# | 0.15 ± 0.66 | A 0.01 |
| O 0.19 | |||||
| A-O 0.33 | |||||
| IL-6 | 0.05 ± 0.6 | −0.19 ± 0.39 | 0.09 ± 0.66 | 0.03 ± 0.59 | A 0.01 |
| O 0.19 | |||||
| A-O 0.89 | |||||
| IL-8 | 0.59 ± 0.55** | 0.18 ± 0.74**#^ | 0.82 ± 0.64# | 0.78 ± 0.60^ | A <0.0001 |
| O 0.03 | |||||
| A-O 0.21 | |||||
| IL-12 | 0.04 ± 0.78 | −0.12 ± 0.62 | 0.28 ± 0.86 | 0.30 ± 0.96 | A <0.01 |
| O 0.66 | |||||
| A-O 0.94 | |||||
| IL-17 | 0.07 ± 0.78 | −0.13 ± 0.70 | 0.26 ± 0.83 | 0.27 ± 0.93 | A <0.01 |
| O 0.54 | |||||
| A-O 0.85 | |||||
| MCP-1 | 2.33 ± 0.3** | 1.82 ± 1.10**#^ | 2.31 ± 0.36# | 2.23 ± 0.28^ | A 0.05 |
| O 0.001 | |||||
| A-O 0.02 | |||||
| IP-10 | 2.33 ± 0.22** | 1.95 ± 0.78**#^ | 2.29 ± 0.23# | 2.25 ± 0.27^ | A 0.09 |
| O 0.001 | |||||
| A-O 0.007 | |||||
| IL-4 | 1.42 ± 0.8 | 1.76 ± 0.50 | 1.73 ± 0.70 | 1.10 ± 0.50 | A 0.04 |
| O 0.49 | |||||
| A-O 0.99 | |||||
| IL-10 | 0.13 ± 0.61 | 0.04 ± 0.49 | 0.21 ± 0.57 | 0.21 ± 0.71 | A 0.23 |
| O 0.46 | |||||
| A-O 0.41 | |||||
| IL-13 | 0.10 ± 0.62 | 0.60 ± 0.35# | 0.40 ± 0.80# | 0.34 ± 0.88 | A 0.001 |
| O 0.34 | |||||
| A-O 0.80 |
Definition of abbreviations: IP = IFN-γ–inducible protein; MCP = monocyte chemotactic protein.
All results are reported as mean ± SD.
*
All cytokines have been log10 transformed.
Similar symbols for each cytokine denote significant between-group differences determined by Bonferroni post hoc analyses.
P values are reported for the main effects and interaction between obesity and asthma: A = asthma versus nonasthma; A-O = asthma by obesity interaction; O = obese versus normal weight.