While cardiac imaging has improved the diagnosis and risk assessment for cardiac sarcoidosis (CS), treatment regimens have consisted of generalized heart failure therapies and non-specific anti-inflammatory regimens. The overall goal of this study was to perform high-sensitivity plasma profiling of specific inflammatory pathways in patients with sarcoidosis and with CS.

Specific inflammatory/proteolytic cascades were upregulated in sarcoidosis patients, and certain profiles emerged for CS patients.

Plasma samples were collected from patients with biopsy-confirmed sarcoidosis undergoing F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (n = 47) and compared to those of referent control subjects (n = 6). Using a high-sensitivity, automated multiplex array, cytokines, soluble cytokine receptor profiles (an index of cytokine activation), as well as matrix metalloproteinase (MMP), and endogenous MMP inhibitors (TIMPs) were examined.

The plasma tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and soluble TNF receptors sCD30 and sTNFRI were increased using sarcoidosis, and sTNFRII increased in CS patients (n = 18). The soluble interleukin sIL-2R and vascular endothelial growth factor receptors (sVEGFR2 and sVEGFR3) increased to the greatest degree in CS patients. When computed as a function of referent control values, the majority of soluble cytokine receptors increased in both sarcoidosis and CS groups. Plasma MMP-9 levels increased in sarcoidosis but not in the CS subset. Plasma TIMP levels declined in both groups.

The findings from this study were the identification of increased activation of a cluster of soluble cytokine receptors, which augment not only inflammatory cell maturation but also transmigration in patients with sarcoidosis and patients with cardiac involvement.

虽然心脏成像改善了心脏结节病 (CS) 的诊断和风险评估，但治疗方案包括广泛的心力衰竭治疗和非特异性抗炎方案。本研究的总体目标是对结节病和 CS 患者的特定炎症通路进行高灵敏度血浆分析。

特定的炎症/蛋白水解级联在结节病患者中上调，并且在 CS 患者中出现了某些特征。

从接受 F-18 氟脱氧葡萄糖正电子发射断层扫描的活检确诊结节病患者 ( n = 47)收集血浆样本，并与参考对照受试者 ( n = 6) 进行比较。使用高灵敏度、自动化的多重阵列检测细胞因子、可溶性细胞因子受体谱（细胞因子活化的指标）以及基质金属蛋白酶 (MMP) 和内源性 MMP 抑制剂 (TIMP)。

使用结节病增加血浆肿瘤坏死因子 (TNF) 和可溶性 TNF 受体 sCD30 和 sTNFRI，CS 患者 ( n = 18)增加 sTNFRII 。可溶性白细胞介素 sIL-2R 和血管内皮生长因子受体（sVEGFR2 和 sVEGFR3）在 CS 患者中增加到最大程度。当作为参考对照值的函数计算时，大多数可溶性细胞因子受体在结节病和 CS 组中均增加。血浆 MMP-9 水平在结节病中增加，但在 CS 亚组中没有增加。两组的血浆 TIMP 水平均下降。

这项研究的结果是确定了一组可溶性细胞因子受体的激活增加，这不仅增加了炎性细胞成熟，而且增加了结节病患者和心脏受累患者的轮回。