The Local Inflammatory Responses to Infection of the Peritoneal Cavity in Humans: Their Regulation by Cytokines, Macrophages, and Other Leukocytes
Figure 3
(a) Patients and methods as in Figure 1. Ex vivo IL- release is stimulated by LPS. Difference between pM from an infection-free period () and an episode of peritonitis (), was statistically not significant. Using an ELISA specific to the bioactive, hetero-dimeric IL-, no active IL-12 was detectable in supernatants from uninfected patients () nor in those with peritonitis (), whether or not the cells were stimulated with LPS. Consistent with this finding, virtually no IL- mRNA was expressed (data not shown). All peritonitis episodes were caused by gram positive bacteria. (b) ex vivo IL-10 release from pM from infected patients () is decreased as compared with pM from an infection free environment (), (). IL-10 levels in peritoneal effluents from peritonitis were higher compared with infection-free effluents, 235 pg/mL and 25 pg/mL, respectively (data not shown in figure).
