Akira Matsumori1, Toshio Shimada2, Eiji Nakatani2, Miho Shimada3, Steven Tracy4, Nora M Chapman4, Mark T Drayson5, Vernon L Hartz6, Jay W Mason7. 1. Clinical Research Center, Kyoto Medical Center, Kyoto, Japan. Electronic address: amat@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp. 2. Clinical Research Center, Shizuoka General Hospital, Shizuoka, Japan. 3. VCL Laboratory, Osaka, Japan. 4. University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, USA. 5. University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK. 6. University of Arizona Health Sciences Center, Tucson 85724, USA. 7. University of Utah Medical Center, Salt Lake City, USA.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: In this study, we measured immunoglobulin free light chains (FLC), a biomarker of inflammation in the sera of patients with heart failure due to myocarditis. METHODS: FLC kappa and FLC lambda were assayed in stored serum samples from patients with heart failure with myocarditis from the US myocarditis treatment trial by a competitive-inhibition multiplex Luminex® assay. RESULTS: The median concentration of circulating FLC kappa/lambda ratio was significantly lower in the sera from patients with heart failure with myocarditis than in healthy controls, and FLC kappa/lambda ratio had good diagnostic ability for identification of heart failure with myocarditis. Further, FLC kappa/lambda ratio was an independent prognostic factor for overall survival, and allowed creation of three prognostic groups by combining with N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that FLC kappa/lambda ratio is a promising biomarker of heart failure with myocarditis.
BACKGROUND: In this study, we measured immunoglobulin free light chains (FLC), a biomarker of inflammation in the sera of patients with heart failure due to myocarditis. METHODS: FLC kappa and FLC lambda were assayed in stored serum samples from patients with heart failure with myocarditis from the US myocarditis treatment trial by a competitive-inhibition multiplex Luminex® assay. RESULTS: The median concentration of circulating FLC kappa/lambda ratio was significantly lower in the sera from patients with heart failure with myocarditis than in healthy controls, and FLC kappa/lambda ratio had good diagnostic ability for identification of heart failure with myocarditis. Further, FLC kappa/lambda ratio was an independent prognostic factor for overall survival, and allowed creation of three prognostic groups by combining with N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that FLC kappa/lambda ratio is a promising biomarker of heart failure with myocarditis.