Background

Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease that threatens human health worldwide. However, the immune regulation cascade caused by treponemia pallidum (TP) infection remains still largely unclear.

Methods

To investigate the expression of ISGs in secondary syphilis (SS), we recruited 64 patients with SS and equal number of healthy participants to obtain their peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). qRT-PCR was performed to estimate the expression of interferon-stimulated genes (ISGs) including CXCL10, OAS3, OAS1, MX1, IFIT3, IFIT2, IFI6 and AIM2. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was adapted to diagnostic value of these genes to distinguish healthy controls and patients with SS.

Results

ISGs including CXCL10, OAS3, OAS1, MX1, IFIT3, IFIT2, IFI6 and AIM2 were all upregulated in PBMCs of patients with SS. Area under the ROC curve (AUC) of the 8 ISGs were all more than 0.5. IFIT3 exhibited the highest diagnostic value, followed by AIM2, IFIT2 and CXCL10, according to the Yoden Index.

Conclusion

ISGs including CXCL10, OAS3, OAS1, MX1, IFIT3, IFIT2, IFI6 and AIM2 were upregulated in patients with SS and they have diagnostic value for syphilis.

中文翻译：

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二期梅毒患者外周血单个核细胞干扰素刺激基因的表达

背景

梅毒是一种威胁全世界人类健康的性传播疾病。然而，由梅毒螺旋体 (TP) 感染引起的免疫调节级联反应在很大程度上仍不清楚。

方法

为了研究 ISG 在二期梅毒 (SS) 中的表达，我们招募了 64 名 SS 患者和同等数量的健康参与者，以获取他们的外周血单个核细胞 (PBMC)。进行 qRT-PCR 以估计干扰素刺激基因 (ISG) 的表达，包括 CXCL10、OAS3、OAS1、MX1、IFIT3、IFIT2、IFI6 和 AIM2。接受者操作特征 (ROC) 分析适用于这些基因的诊断价值，以区分健康对照和 SS 患者。

结果

包括 CXCL10、OAS3、OAS1、MX1、IFIT3、IFIT2、IFI6 和 AIM2 在内的 ISG 在 SS 患者的 PBMC 中均上调。8个ISG的ROC曲线下面积（AUC）均大于0.5。根据 Yoden 指数，IFIT3 的诊断价值最高，其次是 AIM2、IFIT2 和 CXCL10。

结论

ISGs包括CXCL10、OAS3、OAS1、MX1、IFIT3、IFIT2、IFI6和AIM2在SS患者中表达上调，对梅毒有诊断价值。