The relationship between neuropathic pain and serum endocan, ET-1, IL-1, IL-6, IL-8, MCP-1, TNF-α, VEGF-A levels in fibromyalgia patients and molecular docking results

Abstract

Purpose: The most important clinical finding of fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) is pain. Its etiology has not been fully elucidated. This study was planned to determine the relationship between endocan, ET-1, IL-1, IL-6, IL-8, MCP-1, TNF-a, VEGF-A levels and pain/neuropathic pain in FMS patients. Materials and Methods: Forty-four FMS patients who met the inclusion criteria and 44 age-matched premenopausal healthy controls were recruited. The fibromyalgia group was evaluated in terms of Visual Analog Scale, Beck Depression Scale, Beck Anxiety Scale, Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire and LANSS Pain Scale. Serum endocan, ET-1, IL-1, IL-6, IL-8, MCP-1, TNF-α, and VEGF-A values were determined by the ELISA method. Protein-protein interaction was evaluated by molecular docking analysis. Bioinformatics analysis was performed using the STRING v 11.5 protein interaction tool. Results: Endocan, ET-1, IL-1, IL-6, IL-8, MCP-1, TNF-α, and VEGF-A were significantly higher in FMS patients than the control group. 24 of 44 patients had neuropathic pain. No correlation was found between pain/neuropathic pain and serum markers levels. High interaction and homology scores of the proteins were defined. Conclusion: The pain/neuropathic pain relationship of these markers could not be determined, but the calculated binding energies and activities of the proteins provided important clues for future studies.