Expression of Nod-like receptor protein 3 inflammasome in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of children with Kawasaki disease in the acute stage

Abstract:

Objective To study the association of Nod-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome with inflammatory response in the acute stage and coronary artery lesion (CAL) in children with Kawasaki disease (KD). Methods A total of 42 children with KD who were hospitalized from January to October 2017 were enrolled as the KD group, among whom 9 had CAL (CAL group) and 33 had no CAL (NCAL group). Fifteen age-and gendermatched children with pneumonia and pyrexia were enrolled as the pneumonia-pyrexia group. Fifteen healthy children were enrolled as the healthy control group. Real-time PCR was used to measure the mRNA expression of NLRP3 inflammasome (NLRP3, ASC and caspase-1) in peripheral blood mononuclear cells. The Spearman rank correlation test was used to investigate the correlation of NLRP3 mRNA expression with serum levels of C-reactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, interleukin-6, interleukin-1β, procalcitonin, albumin and prealbumin. Results The KD group had significantly higher mRNA expression of NLRP3, ASC and caspase-1 in the acute stage than the pneumonia-pyrexia and healthy control groups (P < 0.05). The CAL group had significantly higher mRNA expression of NLRP3 than the NCAL group (P < 0.05). NLRP3 mRNA expression was correlated with C-reactive protein, interleukin-6, interleukin-1β, and prealbumin levels in children with KD in the acute stage (r_s=0.449, 0.376, 0.427, and -0.416 respectively; P < 0.05). Conclusions NLRP3 inflammasome may participate in inflammatory response in the acute stage and the development of CAL in children with KD.