Abstract
We aimed to investigate changes in serum concentrations of the cytokines interleukin (IL)-2 and interferon (IFN)-γ during the clinical course of active tuberculosis, to establish the presence of cellular immunity before and after treatment. Blood samples were taken from 18 patients with active tuberculosis before and 2 months after therapy; IL-2 and IFN-γ concentrations were evaluated. The mean serum IL-2 concentration before therapy was 164.5 pg/ml (range 12–980 pg/ml) and the concentration 2 months after therapy was 92.11 pg/ml (range 1–490 pg/ml). The mean serum IFN-γ concentrations were 10.83 pg/ml (range 1–22.2 pg/ml) and 4.64 pg/ml (range 1–28.5 pg/ml), respectively. The decrease in concentrations of both cytokines after therapy was statistically significant. Further studies investigating the benefits of adding cytokines to drug treatment for tuberculosis are needed.