Upregulation of interleukin-1β and interleukin-18 in traumatic brain injury patients and their potential as biomarkers

Background: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is diagnosed using radiological imaging and biomarker analysis, each with certain limitations. Accurate and accessible detection of TBI is essential for its treatment. Since interleukin (IL)-1β and IL-18 are key neuroinflammatory cytokines, we aim to investigate the regulation of IL-1β and IL-18 in TBI patients and assess their potential as biomarkers of TBI. Methods: Forty TBI and 40 healthy subjects were recruited for this study. The Glasgow coma scale (GCS) was used to assess the clinical severity of TBI. Spearman’s rank-order correlation was employed to find the association between GCS scores and IL levels of TBI patients. An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) with human IL-1β and IL-18 ELISA kits was conducted to measure the serum IL-1β and IL-18 levels. The area under the curve (AUC), sensitivity, and specificity were measured to assess the potential of IL-1β and IL-18 as biomarkers. Results: The patients had mild-to-moderate TBI (mTBI) with a mean GCS score of 11.05 ± 1.67. A negative correlation was found between GCS scores and IL levels, while IL-1 β and IL-18 were positively correlated with each other. IL-1β levels in the TBI and healthy subjects were 1882.19 ± 796.72 pg/mL and 1473.50 ± 333.045 pg/mL, respectively, with a significant difference (p = 0.001). Moreover, the IL-18 levels in TBI subjects (25.92 ± 14.81 ng/L) were also significantly higher (p