Assessment of serum TWEAK levels in patients with familial Mediterranean fever

Abstract

Background/Aim: Mediterranean fever is an autoinflammatory disease characterized by recurrent attacks. Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) - like weak inducer of apoptosis (TWEAK) is a member of the TNF ligand family, and it has been reported to contribute significantly to the initiation of many inflammatory and immunological processes. In previous studies, an increasing amount of evidence has implicated the participation of TWEAK / Fn14 pathway in the pathogenesis of rheumatic inflammatory diseases that include rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus and Behçet's disease. The aim of this study was to investigate the serum TWEAK levels of patients with Familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) and its possible relationship with inflammatory markers and disease activity. Methods: Our study included 20 patients with FMF and 19 healthy volunteers. Erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), C-reactive protein (CRP) were measured, and PRAS disease severity score was determined in patients with FMF. Also, the FMF attack period was questioned. Serum TWEAK levels were measured with available commercial Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay kits. Results: There was no significant difference in terms of age and gender between the FMF group and the healthy control group (P>0.05, for all). ESR, CRP and serum TWEAK levels were significantly higher in patients with FMF (P