Resistin is associated with breach of tolerance and anti-nuclear antibodies in patients with hepatobiliary inflammation.

Resistin is a cysteine-rich protein, which is abundantly expressed at the site of inflammation, and acts as a regulator of the NF-kB-dependent cytokine cascade. The aim of this study was to evaluate resistin levels in relation to inflammatory mediators, disease phenotype and autoantibody status in a spectrum of pathological conditions of the gastrointestinal tract. Resistin levels were measured with an ELISA in sera originated from 227 patients and 40 healthy controls (HC). Fifty patients diagnosed with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), 53 ulcerative colitis (UC), 51 Crohn's disease (CD), 46 autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) and 27 primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) were included. The sera were analysed with respect to biochemical parameters of systemic inflammation and liver function and to the presence of antibodies to nuclear antigens (ANA), mitochondria (AMA) and smooth muscle (SMA). Compared with HC, resistin levels were raised in AIH (P = 0.017) and PSC (P = 0.03); compared with NAFLD, levels were elevated in CD (P = 0.041), AIH (P < 0.001) and PSC (P < 0.001). Patients with elevated levels of resistin were more often treated with corticosteroids, but no difference was found between active disease and clinical remission. Resistin levels were significantly higher in ANA-positive individuals compared with ANA-negative (P = 0.025). Resistin levels were directly correlated with IL-6 (r = 0.30, P = 0.02) and IL-8 (r = 0.51, P < 0.001). Elevated levels of resistin were prominent in patients with hepatobiliary inflammation and were associated with breach of self-tolerance, i.e. ANA positivity. Thus, we propose that resistin may be an important marker of disease severity in autoantibody-mediated gastrointestinal inflammatory diseases.