Extracellular heat shock protein 60 (Hsp60) levels in children with septic shock

Objective and design: Recent data suggest that extracellular Hsp60 modulates the host innate immune response. We analyzed plasma Hsp60 levels in children admitted to a level III tertiary care PICU with septic shock. Materials and subjects: Blood samples were obtained from children meeting criteria for septic shock (n = 63), critically ill children without septic shock (n = 10), and healthy controls (n = 24). Treatment: Not applicable. Methods: Hsp60 levels were measured in the plasma using a commercially available ELISA. Differences between groups were analyzed with a Kruskal-Wallis one way ANOVA due to the non-parametric nature of the data. A p value ≤ 0.05 was considered significant. Results: Extracellular Hsp60 levels were significantly higher in children with septic shock (median, 16.7 ng/mL) compared to both critically ill children without septic shock (median, 0 ng/mL) and healthy controls (median, 0 ng/mL, p <0.001). Conclusions: Extracellular Hsp60 levels are significantly elevated in children with septic shock compared with both healthy controls and critically ill children without sepsis. Extracellular Hsp60 may play a role in the pathogenesis of sepsis in children. Received 3 July 2006; returned for revision 18 October 2006; accepted by K. Visvanathan 6 December 2006