Hindawi Publishing Corporation

Journal of Immunology Research

Volume 2014, Article ID 162047, 6 pages
http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2014/162047

Clinical Study
Obesity and Cytokines in Childhood-Onset Systemic
Lupus Erythematosus
Nail Anglica Sinicato,1 Mariana Postal,2 Fernando Augusto Peres,2
Karina de Oliveira Peliari,2 Roberto Marini,3 Allan de Oliveira dos Santos,4
Celso Dario Ramos,4 and Simone Appenzeller1,2
1

Faculty of Medical Science, State University of Campinas, Cidade Universitaria, 13083-970 Campinas, SP, Brazil
Rheumatology Unit, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medical Science, State University of Campinas, Cidade Universitaria,
13083-970 Campinas, SP, Brazil
3
Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medical Science, State University of Campinas, Cidade Universitaria, 13083-970 Campinas,
SP, Brazil
4
Department of Radiology, Nuclear Medicine Division, State University of Campinas, Cidade Universitaria, 13083-970 Campinas,
SP, Brazil
2

Correspondence should be addressed to Simone Appenzeller; [email protected]

Received 28 July 2013; Revised 18 October 2013; Accepted 1 November 2013; Published 3 March 2014
Academic Editor: Joseph Fomusi Ndisang
Copyright 2014 Nailu Angelica Sinicato et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution
License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly
cited.
Background. In systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), atherosclerosis is attributed to traditional and lupus related risk factors,
including metabolic syndrome (MetS), obesity, and inflammation. Objective. To evaluate the association between obesity, measures
of body fat content, serum tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-), and interleukin (IL)-6 and -10 levels in childhood-onset SLE
(cSLE). Methods. We screened consecutive cSLE patients followed up in the Pediatric Rheumatology Outpatient Clinic of the
State University of Campinas. cSLE patients were assessed for disease and damage. Obesity was definite as body mass index
(BMI) 30 kg/m2 . Serum TNF-, IL-6, and IL-10 levels were measured by ELISA. Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry was used
to determine total fat mass, lean mass, and percent of body fat. Results. We included 52 cSLE patients and 52 controls. cSLE patients
had higher serum TNF- ( = 0.004), IL-6 ( = 0.002), and IL-10 ( < 0.001) levels compared to controls. We observed higher
serum TNF- ( = 0.036) levels in cSLE patients with obesity. An association between serum TNF- levels and body fat percent
( = 0.046) and total fat mass on trunk region ( = 0.035) was observed. Conclusion. Serum TNF- levels were associated with
obesity and body fat content in cSLE. Our finding suggests that obesity may contribute to the increase of serum TNF- levels in
cSLE.

1. Introduction
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic systemic
inflammatory disease affecting mainly women during childbearing age [1]. Although life expectancy has improved
significantly, no changes in morbidity and mortality related
to cardiovascular disease (CVD) have been observed in SLE
patients in the past decades [2, 3]. In addition to traditional
risk factors, many lupus-specific factors are linked to the
increased risk of CVD observed in SLE [46].
Obesity-associated systemic inflammation is characterized by increased circulating proinflammatory cytokines and

activation of several kinases that regulate inflammation [7

9]. Recent evidence supports that obesity-induced inflammation is mediated primarily by immune cells such as the
macrophages and T lymphocytes present in metabolic tissues
[9]. Adipose tissue derived cells can produce inflammatory
cytokines, such as tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-),
interleukin (IL) 6, and IL-10 [10, 11].
TNF- and IL-6 are proinflammatory cytokines associated with an increased insulin resistance, inhibition of
insulin receptor autophosphorylation, and signal transduction. These mechanisms lead to insulin resistance,

2
hyperglycemia, and dyslipidemia [1218]. IL-10 is also
known as an antiatherogenic cytokine. Upregulation of IL-10
locally or systemically reduces atherosclerosis development
in mouse models [1315].
The aim of this study was to evaluate the association
between obesity, measures of body fat content, and serum
TNF-, IL-6, and IL-10 in cSLE.

2. Patients and Methods

2.1. Subjects. Fifty-two consecutive cSLE patients, recruited
from the Pediatric Rheumatology Outpatient Clinic of the
State University of Campinas were included in this study.
Patients were included in the present study if they (i)
fulfilled at least four criteria of the American College of
Rheumatology (ACR) [19]; (ii) were below 18 years of age at
disease onset; and (iii) had a follow-up duration of at least 6
months (time necessary to evaluate damage index).
Fifty-two healthy volunteers (caregivers or students)
matched by age, gender, and sociodemographic characteristics were included as a control group. None of the controls
had any history of chronic disease, including autoimmune
diseases.
This study was approved by the ethics committee at our
institution, and the informed written consent was obtained
from each participant and/or legal guardian.
2.2. Clinical Features. All patients had their medical histories
and clinical,and serological characteristics entered at the time
of cSLE diagnosis into special computer database programs.
Features included in this protocol were age at the onset of
disease (defined as the age at which the first symptoms clearly
attributable to SLE occurred), age at diagnosis (defined as the
age when patients fulfilled four or more of the 1987 revised
criteria for the classification of SLE [19]), and follow-up time
(defined as the time from disease onset until December 2012).
Total doses and length of use the of corticosteroids since
the onset of disease were calculated by careful review of the
medical charts. Doses of oral and parenteral corticosteroids
were converted to the equivalent doses of prednisone. The
cumulative dose of corticosteroids used was calculated by
the sum of the daily dosages versus the time (days) of treatment. We also calculated the cumulative corticosteroid dose
adjusted by weight by summing up the daily corticosteroid
dose per weight at each routine visit.
2.3. Disease Activity and Cumulative Damage. Disease activity was measured by the Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI) [20]. SLEDAI scores range
between 0 and 105, and the scores of 3 were considered as
active disease [21]. Adjusted SLEDAI scores over time were
calculated by careful review of the medical charts and preview
exams [22]. Cumulative SLE-related damage in all patients
was determined by using the Systemic Lupus International
Collaborating Clinics (SLICC)/ACR Damage Index (SDI)
[23].
2.4. Body Mass Index. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated
as weight (kg) divided by height (m) squared (kg/m2 ).

Journal of Immunology Research

Criteria used to define nutritional status were based on
the World Health Organization (WHO) criteria [24]. BMI
cutoff points for Brazilian children and adolescents were used
for individuals between 2 and 18 years [25]. Obesity was
considered when BMI was above 30 Kg/m2 .
2.5. Dual X-Ray Absorptiometry (DXA). Percentual body fat
(PBF), fat mass, and lean mass were obtained by DXA scan
(Hologic Discovery Wii), through Whole Body Auto Fan
Beam. This scan determines total fat mass and total lean mass
in kilograms in addition to total fat mass and total lean mass
as a percentage of total body mass.
2.6. Blood Sampling. Blood samples were collected from
peripheral veins of all individuals in dry tubes and left to clot
at room temperature for 30 minutes. Blood samples were then
centrifuged for 15 minutes at 3000 rpm, and the serum was
then stored in aliquots at 80 C for future use. We did not
collect blood samples from individuals during an episode of
acute or chronic infection.
2.7. Cytokine Assay. Commercially available kits from R&D
Systems (London, UK) were used for the measurement
of serum TNF-, IL-6, and IL-10 levels by enzymelinked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), carried out in accordance with the manufacturers instructions. The minimum detectable dose (MDD) was 0.106 pg/mL for TNF-,
0.039 pg/mL for IL-6, and 3.9 pg/mL for IL-10.
2.8. Statistical Analysis. All the data were tested for their
normal distribution (Kolmogorov-Smirnov test). Categorical
variables were compared by 2 test. Nonnormal variables
were compared by Fisher exact tests. Mann-Whitney test
was used to compare anthropometric measure and laboratory
studies between patients and controls. Spearmans correlation
was used to correlate continuous variables (e.g., TNF- levels,
SLEDAI, and SDI scores). For all analyses, value 0.05 was
considered to be statistically significant. Statistical analysis
was carried out using IBM SPSS Statistics 16.0 software
(SPSS/IBM, Chicago, IL, USA).

3. Results
3.1. Demographics. We included 52 consecutive cSLE
patients. Forty-seven (90.3%) were women with mean age
of 17.6 years (standard deviation (SD) 3.7 years). Mean
disease duration was 5.14 years (SD 4.05). The control
group consisted of 52 controls (47 women) with mean age
of 18.2 years (SD 6.4). Patients and healthy controls were
statistically comparable in terms of age and sex (Table 1).
3.2. BMI Analyses. BMI was similar between patients
(median 21.74 kg/m2 ; range: 16.131.12 kg/m2 ) and controls
(median 21.43 kg/m2 ; range: 14.3628.54 kg/m2 ) ( = 0.101).
Sixteen (31%) cSLE patients were overweight compared to 6
(11.5%) controls ( = 0.018).

Journal of Immunology Research

Table 1: Demographics data from cSLE and controls.

Age (mean SD)

Female (; %)
Disease duration
(mean SD)

cSLE patients
= 52

Healthy controls
= 52

17.6 3.7
47 (90.3)

18.2 6.4
47 (90.3)

5.14

Table 2: Sera cytokines levels of the individuals included in the

study.
Sera levels
TNF-
IL-6
IL-10

cSLE patients
= 52
1.93 pg/mL
(0.811.17 pg/mL)
1.46 pg/mL
(0.349.74 pg/mL)
13.86 pg/mL
(3.9356.92 pg/mL)

Healthy controls
= 52
1.23 pg/mL
(0.253.91 pg/mL)
0.95 pg/mL
(0.393.91 pg/mL)
6.64 pg/mL
(3.529.54 pg/mL)

0.05.
The data were given in median (range).
cSLE: childhood-onset systemic lupus erythemathosus; TNF-: tumor
necrosis factor alpha; IL: interleukin.

We did not observe an association between BMI and

SLEDAI, SDI, and cumulative corticosteroid dose.
3.3. Body Composition Analysis. On whole body analysis,
we observed a median fat mass of 22.38 kg (range: 7.67 kg
36.62 kg), a median lean mass of 35.49 kg (range: 25.31 kg
52.14 kg), and a median PBF of 34.1% (range: 12.154.4%) in
cSLE. In the trunk region we observed a median fat mass of
8.62 kg (range 2.98 kg17.59 kg), median lean mass of 16.80 kg
(range: 11.24 kg26.19 kg) and a PBF of 42.3% (range: 12.1
54.4%).
3.4. Cytokine Assay. Serum TNF- ( = 0.004), IL-6 ( =
0.002), and IL-10 ( < 0.001) levels were significantly
increased in cSLE patients when compared to healthy controls (Table 2). We observed higher serum TNF- levels in
obese cSLE patients when compared with nonobese cSLE
patients ( = 0.036), obese controls ( = 0.039) and nonobese controls ( < 0.0001) (Table 3). No difference in serum
TNF- levels was observed between obese and non-obese
healthy controls ( > 0.05). We observed an association
between TNF- and PBF ( = 0.046) and total fat mass on
trunk region ( = 0.035) analyzed by DXA scans.
No association between serum IL-6 and IL-10 levels
and SLEDAI or SDI scores was observed. In addition, no
difference in these cytokine levels in cSLE patients and
controls with and without obesity was observed.

4. Discussion
Adipose tissue is known to be capable of secreting cytokines
such as TNF-, IL-6, and IL-10. Therefore, the purpose of this
study was to assess whether the levels of these cytokines were

increased in obese cSLE when compared to nonobese cSLE

and healthy controls.
The observation that obese cSLE patients had higher
serum TNF- levels when compared to nonobese cSLE and
healthy controls is the major finding of our study. In addition,
we observed that serum TNF- levels correlated with PBF
and total fat mass in trunk region in cSLE.
Recent studies have demonstrated that increased adipose tissue mass contributes towards an increase in chronic
inflammation [26, 27]. Chronic inflammation is further
enhanced by inflammatory markers produced in the liver
and in other organs [28]. Recently, it has been demonstrated
that obesity is associated with a low-grade inflammatory
process, characterized by increased circulating levels of
proinflammatory cytokines such as TNF-, IL-6, and acutephase proteins (CRP) [2932]. The mechanism underlying
increased inflammation in the setting of obesity remains
unclear, but it is known that mononuclear cells are activated
and proinflammatory cytokines are upregulated in obese
individuals [33, 34].
We observed an association between serum TNF- levels
and PBF and total fat mass in trunk region. Studies analyzing
the association between serum TNF- and DXA scans have
not been reported in cSLE so far, but studies on healthy
women and type-2 diabetes patients showed an association
between plasma levels of TNF- and visceral adipose tissue
volume measured by CT-scan [3538]. Previous studies have
shown that visceral fat accumulation is associated with
increased risk of CV risk [37]. In addition, with an increase
in TNF-, a reduction in lipoprotein lipase activity in adipose
tissue is observed [39]. There is also evidence that TNF-
has a local effect, regulating adipocyte size in the face of
increasing energy consumption [40, 41].
Cytokines, such as TNF- and IL-6, are primarily
involved in the early stages of the inflammatory response
culminating in atherosclerosis [39, 42]. Increased TNF-
levels in the endothelium promote initial atheroma plaque
[39, 42]. However, so far, studies were not able to conclude
whether TNF- is a causative factor of atherosclerosis.
Both IL-6 and TNF- are expressed and secreted by
human adipose tissue [43]. In obesity, increased secretion of
IL-6 may contribute to metabolic dysfunction [44, 45]. In
addition, one previous study has shown that IL-6 correlated
positively with BMI and with measures of insulin resistance in
abdominal obese male subjects [45]. As previously described
in adults SLE patients, we observed higher IL-6 and IL-10
levels in cSLE patients when compared to healthy controls
[4649]. However, no association with BMI was observed in
our cSLE cohort.
IL-10 downregulates inflammatory activation of monocytes and macrophages by transcriptional and posttranscriptional inhibition of the entire range of proinflammatory
cytokines [50]. IL-10 has been shown to reduce atherosclerosis and it can be found in atheromatous plaque due to local
macrophages production [50]. However, IL-10 is involved in
SLE pathogenesis and it is increased in SLE patients with
CVD compared to SLE patients without CVD [51, 52]. In our
study, we did not observe an association between sera IL-10
levels and obesity.

Journal of Immunology Research

Table 3: Cytokines levels and therapy information from subjects subdivided into obese and nonobese.

Cytokines levels
TNF- (pg/mL)
IL-6 (pg/mL)
IL-10 (pg/mL)
Therapy
CE dose (mean SD)
CE/Kg (mean SD)
CE cumulative (mean SD)

Obese cSLE
= 16

Nonobese cSLE
= 36

Obese controls
=7

Nonobese controls
= 45

3.1 (111.1)
1.4 (0.36.9)
16.7 (7.626.3)

1.8 (0.811.1)
1.4 (0.39.7)
13.6 (3.939.7)

1.3 (0.52.1)
0.9 (0.45.9)
4.9 (3.96)

1.2 (0.23.9)
0.9 (0.33.6)
5.6 (3.59.5)

17.3 19.8
535.1 339.5
28036.7 17611.5

18.3 19.8
444.5 245.9
23057 16568.7

The cytokine data were given in median (range). < 0.05.

We also did not observe an association between sera IL6 levels and obesity. In the literature, it has been described
that plasma IL-6 levels are associated with increased CV
risk and observed in SLE patients with metabolic syndrome
[53] and in patients with type 2 diabetes [44, 54]. In a
large healthy family population study where children were
included, IL-6 levels were closely associated with traditional
and nontraditional risk factors for atherosclerosis [55].
Although cSLE is rare, it is important to consider that one
limitation of our study is the small number of patients and
controls included.
Corticosteroids are associated with weight gain due to
increased appetite and fluid retention. Corticosteroids also
cause a redistribution of fat deposition, occurring predominantly in the trunk and face [5659]. However, we did not
observe an association between serum TNF-, IL-6, and IL10 levels and corticosteroid dose.
To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to
evaluate the association of BMI, body composition and serum
TNF-, IL-6, and IL-10 levels in cSLE patients. Although
these cytokines have been shown to be associated with
CVD in other populations, we only observed an association
between serum TNF- levels and obesity, and PBF and total
fat mass in trunk region. Our findings suggest that total fat
mass may contribute to increased levels of serum TNF-
levels in cSLE.

Conflict of Interests
The authors declare that there is no conflict of interests
regarding the publication of this paper.

Acknowledgments
The authors thank Fundacao de Amparo a` Pesquisa do
Estado Sao Paulo-Brasil (FAPESP 2008/02917-0 and 2010/
13637-9 and 2011/03788-2), Conselho Nacional Pesquisa
Desenvolvimento-Brasil CNPq (300447/2009-4 e 471343/
2011-0 e 302205/2012-8).

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