Detection of DNA in the plasma of septic patients.

Small amounts of plasma-free DNA have been observed both in healthy individuals and in patients with various diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, viral hepatitis, and cancer. This communication demonstrates that septic patients also release DNA in plasma. After DNA extraction from plasma, exon 1 of the K-ras gene was amplified by PCR and products were analyzed by dot-blot hybridization. Plasmas from polytraumatic patients and control healthy individuals were used for comparisons with septic patients. Our results show that septic patients present DNA in their plasma. As far as we know, this is the first evidence of circulating DNA in septic patients.