Serum HMGB1 Serves as a Novel Laboratory Indicator Reflecting Disease Activity and Treatment Response in Ankylosing Spondylitis Patients

Abstract

Objective. High mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) is a late inflammatory factor participating in the pathogenesis of various autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. In the current study, we analyzed the association between serum levels of HMGB1 and clinical features of AS patients before and during treatment. Methods. Serum HMGB1 was detected in 147 AS patients and 61 healthy controls using ELISA. We evaluated the association between HMGB1 and extra-articular manifestations as well as disease severity indices. Among these AS patients, 41 patients received close follow-up at 1, 3, and 6 months after treatment. This group comprised 25 patients treated with anti-TNF-α biologics and 16 patients receiving oral NSAIDs plus sulfasalazine. Results. The serum HMGB1 of AS patients was significantly higher than in healthy controls and positively correlated with BASDAI, BASFI, ASDAS-ESR, ASDAS-CRP, ESR, and CRP, but not with HLA-B27, anterior uveitis, and recurrent diarrhea. There was no significant difference between patients with radiographic damage of hip joints and those without. We observed that serum HMGB1 paralleled disease activity after treatment. Conclusion. Serum level of HMGB1 is higher in AS patients, and to some extent, HMGB1 can reflect the activity of AS and be used as a laboratory indicator to reflect the therapeutic response.

Survivin modulatory role in autoimmune and autoinflammatory diseases

“…Palmitoleic acid which is controlled by mammalian target of rapamycin signaling is an emerging biomarker of peripheral blood mononuclear cells in patients of polymiositis (Muro et al, 2014). Serum HMGB1 is also a novel marker in ankylosing spondylitis (Chiou, Moon, Jones, & Tarnawski, 2003, Konno et al, 2000, Wang et al, 2016. (Aoki, Feldman, & Tosato, 2003).…”

Intestinal and enthesis innate immunity in early axial spondyloarthropathy

“…Serum levels of HMGB1 in axSpA patients were reportedly higher than those of controls [ 39 ]. Another report demonstrated an association between serum levels, disease activity and inflammatory markers [ 40 ]. While these factors may all be linked to axSpA, their role in disease pathogenesis requires further elucidation.…”

LPS Primes Brain Responsiveness to High Mobility Group Box-1 Protein

“…In terms of our present results, we observed disulfide-HMGB1-induced tolerance to induce Ca 2+ signals. To this end, such tolerance mechanisms may serve as a protective mechanism in various known pathologies that are accompanied by increased plasma HMGB1 levels, like pulmonary arterial hypertension [88], ankylosing spondylitis [89] or neurological disease that do not elicit overt sickness responses like fever. In these clinical scenarios HMGB1 may still serve as a biomarker for prediction and assessment of disease progression though [29].…”