HUMAN-BETA-DEFENSIN-1, FERRITIN AND INTERLEUKIN-6: GENDER DIFFERENCES IN PATIENTS WITH PULMONARY TUBERCULOSIS

Given the increasing popularity of personalized treatment, one cannot ignore the peculiarities of the biochemical markers of the tuberculosis course and their dependence on the patient's gender. The purpose of the study was to investigate differences in the levels of Human-beta-defensin-1, ferritin and interleukin-6 in tuberculosis patients depending on gender. <bold>Materials and methods:</bold> 100 patients with pulmonary tuberculosis (78 men and 28 women) were included in the study. Before the start of antituberculosis treatment, the level of Human-beta-defensin-1 (HBD-1), ferritin and interleukin-6 (IL-6) in the blood was measured on an empty stomach. Statistical processing of data was carried out using the Statistica 8.0 software using the Mann-Whitney test to compare two independent samples. The obtained results were considered reliable at p<0.05. <bold>Results:</bold> Significantly higher levels of HBD-1 (men - 24.14±3.40 pg/ml (median - 9.99 pg/ml)); women - 13.54±3.68 pg/ml (median - 5.53 pg/ml)), ferritin (men - 113.75±4.25 ng/ml (median - 121.46 ng/ml), women – 99.59±7.53 ng/ml (median – 108.60 ng/ml)) and IL-6 (men – 137.30±14.80 pg/ml (median – 139.64 pg/ml), women – 88.13±6.86 pg/ml (median – 85.70 pg/ml)) were found in men compared to women, p<0.05. <bold>Conclusions:</bold> Men with pulmonary tuberculosis have significantly higher levels of Human-beta-defensin-1, ferritin and interleukin-6 before the start of anti-tuberculosis treatment, which is probably related to a more pronounced anti-tuberculosis immune response as a consequence of a more massive bacterial load and severe tuberculosis lesions in men compared to women.