Background: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), composed of Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), is an inflammatory autoimmune disease. CD99 has been reported to participate in migration of leukocytes and T cell activation. However, the roles of CD99 in IBD are obscure.
Materials and methods: CD99 expression was examined in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and inflamed mucosa from IBD patients by qRT-PCR. Serum TNF-α and IL-17A levels were detected by ELISA. Correlations of CD99 expression with TNF-α, IL-17A, Crohn's disease activity index (CDAI), simple endoscopic score for CD (SES-CD), Mayo index, and Truelove grading were performed by Pearson's correlation.
Results: CD99 expression was increased in PBMCs and inflamed mucosa from active CD and UC patients, and CD99 expression was also increased in the inflamed mucosa compared with unaffected control from the same patients. Serum TNF-α and IL-17A levels were increased in active CD or UC patients, and positively correlated with CD99 expression in PBMCs (CD: r = .402, p = .009; r = .350, p = .025. UC: r = .289, p = .028; r = .322, p = .014). Moreover, CD99 expression in inflamed mucosa was correlated with CDAI, SES-CD, Mayo index, and Truelove grading (r = .410, p = .012; r = .341, p = .005; r = .366, p = .002; r = .312, p = .011).
Conclusion: CD99 expression is increased in patients with active IBD, and positively correlated with disease activity. Therefore, CD99 expression can be used as an index to evaluate the activity of IBD.
Keywords: CD99; Inflammatory bowel disease; disease activity; mucosal inflammation.