IS SOLUBLE INTERCELLULAR ADHESION MOLECULE 1 A MARKER OF DISEASE ACTIVITY IN BRONCHIAL ASTHMA

Summary: Increased number of neutrophils, eosinophils and lymphocytes in the airway mucosa in the course of asthma exacerbation develops simultaneously with increase of expression of the specific adhesion molecules (including intercellular adhesion molecule 1) on the postcapillary venulae of the endothelial cells. Our study was aimed at measurement of concentration of soluble intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (sICAM-1) in 7 patients with bronchial asthma in phase of exacerbation, and evaluation of correlation between the obtained value and sICAM-1 concentration obtained in the same patients in the stable state subsequent to seven-day glucocorticosteroid therapy, as well as in comparison to the healthy controls (10 subjects). Mean value of sICAM-1 concentration in patients with asthma exacerbation and healthy controls was 430.49 ng/mL and 260.9 ng/mL, respectively. sICAM-1 concentration was found to be statistically significantly higher in patients with exacerbating asthma in comparison to the healthy controls (Z = ’ 2.246), as well as in comparison to the same patients in the stable state subsequent to seven-day glucocorticosteroid therapy (Z = ’2.197).