@Article{ecn.2009.0147,
AUTHOR = {Feyzullah Guclu, Bilgin Ozmen, Cengiz Kirmaz, Sabriye Ozkaya Kafesciler, Papatya Bayrak Degirmenci, Fatma Taneli, Zeliha Hekimsoy},
TITLE = {Down-regulation of the auto-aggressive processes in patients with hypothyroid Hashimoto’s thyroiditis following substitutive treatment with L-thyroxine},
JOURNAL = {European Cytokine Network},
VOLUME = {20},
YEAR = {2009},
NUMBER = {1},
PAGES = {27--32},
URL = {http://www.techscience.com/ECN/v20n1/65915},
ISSN = {1952-4005},
ABSTRACT = {Background. Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is a chronic, organ-specific autoimmune disease. It is the
most common cause of primary hypothyroidism during the adolescent period, via autoimmune thyroid tissue
destruction, affecting 2% of the population. The pathogenesis of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis involves a complex
interaction between predisposing genetic and environmental factors. Objective. In this study, we wanted to inves-tigate
the role of cytokines such as IL-2, IL-4, IL-12 and IFN-γ in the pathogenesis of the disease, and the
changes to cytokine levels brought about by treatment with L-thyroxine. Methods. Sixty five female patients,
aged 18-73 years with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, referred to the Celal Bayar University Medical Faculty Endocri-nology
out-patients clinic, were included in this study. After a 10-12 week period of L-thyroxine treatment, all
patients were restored to the euthyroid state. At the beginning and end of the treatment period, serum-free tri-iodothyronine
(FT3), free thyroxine (FT4), thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), autoantibodies against thyroid
peroxidase (anti-TPO), autoantibodies against thyroglobulin (anti-Tg) levels were measured using a chemilumi-necent,
immunometric method, and cytokine levels were measured using ELISA. Results. There was a statisti-cally
significant decrease in the serum levels of TSH (p < 0.0001) and a concomitant increase in FT4 serum
levels (p < 0.0001). Also, during the post-treatment period, serum levels of anti-Tg (p < 0.01) and anti-TPO
(p < 0.001) were significantly lower than during the pre-treatment period. A statistically significant decrease
was shown for interleukin (IL)-12 serum levels during the post-treatment period (p < 0.001). However, the
decrease in interferon (IFN)-γ serum levels was not statistically significant (p = 0.276). On the other hand, no
change was demonstrated in serum IL-2 and IL-4 levels (p = 0.953 and p = 0.313, respectively) after treatment
with L-thyroxine. Conclusion. Considering that our study involved a 10-12 week period of treatment, the statis-tically
significant decrease in serum IL-12 levels, and the statistically non-significant decrease in IFN-γ levels,
might indicate that a T helper type 1 inflammatory process had been halted or slowed down.},
DOI = {10.1684/ecn.2009.0147}
}