Investigation of serum IL-12, IL-16, and IL-17A as diagnostic biomarkers in children with cow’s milk protein allergy

Abstract

Background: Cow’s milk protein allergy (CMPA) is an abnormal immune response caused by milk proteins and is most common in infancy and early childhood. Statistics revealed up to 7.5% of children suffered from milk allergy. Its clinical symptoms were characterized by diversity, non-specificity, and can affect multiple systems, including the digestive tract, skin, and respiratory tract. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effects of IL-12, IL-16, and IL-17A on diagnosing and monitoring CMPA in children for clinical treatment. Methods: A total of 158 infants with CMPA and 89 healthy babies were recruited and evaluated. Demographic and clinical information of all participants were recorded. An extensive analysis of inflammatory cytokine levels, including IL-12, IL-16, and IL-17A, was performed in blood samples from 247 infants younger than 9 months. Meanwhile, the serological specificity immunoglobulin E (sIgE) levels were evaluated. In addition, the area under the curve (AUC) values of IL-12, IL-16, and IL-17A in differentiating CMP from healthy babies were measured by receiver operating characteristic analysis. Finally, the correlation between sIgE and IL-12, IL-16, and IL-17A levels were detected using Spearman correlation analysis. Results: Compared with healthy control, infants who developed CMPA had decreased IL-12, increased IL-16, and IL-17A. Moreover, a significant correlation between serum IL-12, IL-16, IL-17A and sIgE levels was observed in the CMPA group. In addition, AUC values of IL-12, IL-16, and IL-17A in discriminating CMPA from healthy infants were 0.8425, 0.9196, and 0.8813, respectively. Finally, IL-12 was increased while IL-16 and IL-17A levels were decreased in the CMPA group after three months of milk avoidance treatment. Conclusions: We found that IL-12, IL-16, and IL-17A levels in children with CMPA were associated with SCORAD scores, sIgE levels, and disease severity, functioning as valuable disease-monitor markers in CMPA.