Cytokine Overproduction, T-Cell Activation, and Defective T-Regulatory Functions Promote Nephritis in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
Figure 2
Th1/Th2 cytokine profile in SLE. (a) Patients with LN () produced large amounts of both IL-12 and IL-18, both in sera (black column) and urine (gray column). By contrast, those with different organ damages () excluding LN, showed the highest production of IL-6 and IL-10. (b) IL-6 was overproduced in patients with high levels of anti-dsDNA antibodies independently from the presence of LN. Other cytokines were poorly associated with nephritogenic antibody production.
