Elevated serum heme oxygenase-1 and insulin-like growth factor-1 levels in patients with Henoch-Schonlein purpura

The aim of this study is to investigate the levels of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and oxidative stress parameters including malondialdehyde (MDA), total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC) and the activities of total superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-PX), catalase (CAT) for exploring the correlations between these biological indexes and the clinical manifestations in Henoch-Schonlein purpura (HSP) patients. 36 patients with different phases of HSP and 16 age- and sex-matched controls were enrolled. MDA level, T-AOC and the activities of SOD, GSH-PX and CAT were measured by spectrophotometry. HO-1 and IGF-1 levels were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Significant higher MDA level, lower T-AOC, SOD, GSH-PX activities were shown in active phase of HSP, respectively, compared with those in early resolution phase of HSP (p < 0.001, <0.001, 0.017, <0.001, respectively) and the control subjects (p < 0.001, <0.001, 0.01, 0.008, respectively). HO-1 (both p < 0.001) and IGF-1 (p < 0.001, 0.009, respectively) levels in active phase and early resolution phase of HSP were significantly higher than those in normal controls. The changes of HO-1 and IGF-1 levels were coincident with overall clinical scores (r = 0.71, p < 0.001; r = 0.615, p < 0.001, respectively). The HO-1 level was found as positive correlation with MDA levels (r = 0.395, p = 0.017), but negative correlations with T-AOC (r = −0.409, p = 0.013) and SOD activities (r = −0.352, p = 0.035). HO-1 and IGF-1 were possibly involved in the pathogenesis of HSP; they could be the marker for evaluating the severity of the disease.