Elevated levels of the cytokine LIGHT in Crohn’s disease

Abstract

AbstractLIGHT, encoded by the TNFSF14 gene, is a cytokine belonging to the tumor necrosis factor superfamily. Upon binding to its receptors, HVEM and LTBR, it activates inflammatory responses. We used a single-molecule immunoassay to determine the circulating levels of free LIGHT in plasma from pediatric patients with Crohn’s disease (N = 183) and a panel of healthy pediatric reference samples (N = 9). LIGHT levels were greatly elevated in Crohn’s disease (average of 305 pg/ml versus 57 pg/ml in controls, P < 0.0001). We performed correlational analyses between LIGHT levels and the clinical characteristics of the Crohn’s cohort, including age, Montreal classification, family history, medical/surgical therapy, and routine blood test parameters. We found statistically significant correlation between white blood cell count and free LIGHT (P < 0.046). Our results support the hypothesis that elevated levels of the cytokine contribute to the pathology of Crohn’s disease and that therapies to neutralize free LIGHT with antibodies may be beneficial.