Abstract: Objective To investigate the expression of interleukin (IL)-1β, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and IL-6 and their correlation with high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) in patients with knee osteoarthritis (KOA). Methods Serum samples were obtained from 85 patients with KOA and 80 healthy controls (HC). Joint fluid samples were obtained from 25 patients with KOA. The levels of IL-1β, TNF-α and IL-6 in serum and joint fluid were measured by enzyme-linked immnuosorbent assay (ELISA). The serum levels of hs-CRP were measured by Latex immunoturbidimetry assay. Serum levels of ESR were measured by automatic ESR monitor. The correlations between IL-1β, TNF-α, IL-6, hs-CRP and ESR were evaluated using Pearson correlation test. Results Serum levels of IL-1β, TNF-α and IL-6 were significantly higher in KOA group compared with those of HC group (all P＜0.01). Moreover, the levels of IL-1β, TNF-α and IL-6 increased with the increase of clinical severity. The levels of IL-1β, TNF-α and IL-6 were significantly higher in joint fluid than those in serum (all P＜0.05). The levels of hs-CRP and ESR were higher in KOA group than those of HC group (all P＜0.01). The serum levels of IL-1β, TNF-α and IL-6 were positively correlated with hsCRP (r=0.489, 0.426 and 0.389, respectively) and ESR (r=0.348, 0.423 and 0.394, respectively). The levels of IL-1β, TNF- α and IL-6 in joint fluid were positively correlated with serum levels of hs-CRP (r=0.547, 0.644 and 0.511, respectively) and ESR (r=0.564, 0.579 and 0.589, respectively). Conclusion Our data show that the detection of inflammatory cytokines and hs-CRP, ESR can be used as potential biomarkers for early diagnosis, disease evaluation and prognosis assessment of KOA.

Key words: knee, osteoarthritis, interleukin-1beta, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, interleukin-6, high sensitivity Creactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate