The Influence of Cigarette Smoking on Cytokine Levels in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Abstract

Anecdotal reports suggest that smoking may be beneficial for patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) as nicotine may act through inflammatory mediators within the colonic mucosa. Furthermore, there is increasing evidence that cytokines play a pathologic role in IBD. Our aim was to determine the effects of cigarette smoking on cytokine levels in the colonic mucosa of patients with and without IBD. Mucosal biopsies were obtained from 10 patients with Crohn's disease (CD), 10 with ulcerative colitis (UC), and 10 healthy controls. Five of 10 patients in each of the three groups were smokers and five were nonsmokers. Concentrations of interleukin (IL)-1beta, IL-2, IL-6, and IL-8 were determined using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Cytokine levels of smokers were compared with nonsmokers in each group and with controls. Results were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney test; significance was set at p<0.05. The concentration of IL-8 was significantly higher in healthy controls who smoke compared with nonsmokers and significantly reduced in smokers with CD compared with nonsmokers with CD. Moreover, concentrations of IL-1beta and IL-8 were significantly reduced in smokers with UC compared with nonsmokers with UC. Smokers had significantly elevated levels of IL-8 in the colonic mucosa. Smokers with IBD had a significant reduction in cytokine levels; specifically, IL-1beta and IL-8 for patients with UC and IL-8 for patients with CD. Further studies are warranted to determine if this reduction in cytokine levels is histologically and clinically significant.

Effect of inflammation, smoking and stress on gingival crevicular fluid cytokine level

“…1997). Other studies showed negative correlations between IL‐8 levels and smoking (Sher et al. 1999).…”

Relationship between serum inflammatory cytokines and lifestyle factors in gastric cancer

“…On the other hand, chronic smoking is characterized by abnormal inflammatory response since the cigarette component have many physiological activities. Clinical study showed that gingival crevicular fluid IL-4, IL-6 and IL-8 were significantly increased in the smoking periodontitis individuals compared with non-smoking periodontitis individuals (26), and smokers with ulcerative colitis had higher serum IL-1β and IL-8 than the non-smokers with ulcerative colitis (27). Experiment in vitro found that cigarette smoke extract (CSE) could promote human macrophage-like cells producing IL-8 and TNF-α (28), and dose-dependently increased IL-8 and IL-6 release in primary human airway epithelial cells (29).…”

Transient Receptor Potential Channels in Intestinal Inflammation: What Is the Impact of Cigarette Smoking?

“…IL-8 is also known to be increased in the mucosa of UC and CD patients [7,8,9,10]. A study reported that CS affects IL-8 levels in the mucosa of UC and CD patients [141]. Of course, the gut is a very complex organ system with complex functions (e.g.…”