TITLE:
Cytokine profiles in sickle cell anemia: Pathways to be unraveled
AUTHORS:
Thassila Nogueira Pitanga, Wendell Vilas-Boas, Bruno Antônio Veloso Cerqueira, Magda Oliveira Seixas, Cynara Gomes Barbosa, Elisângela Vitória Adorno, Marilda Souza Goncalves
KEYWORDS:
Sickle Cell Anemia; Cytokines; Chemokine; Inflammation; Inflammasome
JOURNAL NAME:
Advances in Bioscience and Biotechnology,
Vol.4 No.7A,
July
16,
2013
ABSTRACT: Sickle cell anemia (SCA) is a genetically inherited hemolytic disorder characterized by chronic inflammation. Cytokine expression affects the pivotal pathways that contribute to disease pathogenesis, but the mechanisms involved are not well understood. SCA is associated with a proinflammatory state, and an enhanced inflammatory response occurs during vasoocclusive crisis. The immune system thus plays an important role in this inflammatory condition, with several cell types secreting pro-inflammatory cytokines that contribute to the occurrence of common cyclical events in SCA patients, such as hemolysis, vascular occlusion and inflammation. Studies of these cytokines and chemokines in SCA patients have clarified the mechanisms that underlie this disease and highlighted the need for a better understanding of cytokine participation in SCA pathophysiology.