Hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) is a condition that results in acute kidney failure mainly in children, which is caused by Shiga toxin–producing
Plasma and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) were collected from healthy children and HUS patients exhibiting hemolytic anemia, thrombocytopenia, and kidney damage. Monocytes identified as CD14+ cells were analyzed within PBMC by flow cytometry. IL-10 levels were quantified by ELISA, and SNP −1082 (A/G) was analyzed by allele-specific PCR.
Circulating IL-10 levels were increased in HUS patients, but PBMC from these patients exhibited a lower capacity to secrete this cytokine compared with those from healthy children. Interestingly, there was a negative association between the circulating levels of IL-10 and inflammatory cytokine IL-8. We observed that circulating IL-10 levels were threefold higher in HUS patients with −1082G allele in comparison to AA genotype. Moreover, there was relative enrichment of GG/AG genotypes in HUS patients with severe kidney failure.
Our results suggest a possible contribution of SNP −1082 (A/G) to the severity of kidney failure in HUS patients that should be further evaluated in a larger cohort.