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Serum levels of HSP70 and other DAMP proteins can aid in patient diagnosis after traumatic injury

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Cell Stress and Chaperones Aims and scope

Abstract

Danger-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) are activated by endogenous signals that originate from stressed, injured, or necrotic cells, signifying “danger” to the host. In this study, we evaluated the expression of the DAMP heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) in trauma patients with and without secondary infections. Levels of glucose (GLU), procalcitonin (PCT), total cholesterol (T-Chol), and white blood cell (WBC) counts were also evaluated at three time stages after trauma. Our analysis showed that the levels of serum HSP70 in patients with minor, moderate, and severe injuries were significantly higher than in healthy patients at each time point post-injury (P < 0.01), and levels of serum HSP70 in the severe injury group were significantly higher than in the minor injury group at 1–6 h after trauma (P = 0.047). HSP70 was correlated with GLU and was negatively correlated with T-Chol in the period 1–6 h after injury (P = 0.008/0.032). WBC and GLU were elevated after trauma, with mutual positive correlation (P < 0.001). PCT levels increased later than WBC counts and GLU levels; these levels were correlated at the two later time periods, 24–48 h and 60–90 h (P = 0.008/0.041). PCT continued to rise in patients with secondary infection, but PCT dropped at the third time period in patients without secondary infection. In summary, our results suggest that danger and stress theory can be used to predict severity of trauma.

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Abbreviations

DAMPs:

Danger-associated molecular patterns

HSP70:

Heat shock protein 70

PCT:

Procalcitonin

GLU:

Glucose

WBC:

White blood cell

T-Chol:

Total cholesterol

ED:

Emergency department

ISS:

Injury Severity Score

PAMPs:

Pathogen-associated molecular patterns

PRRs:

Pathogen-recognition receptors

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by a research grant from the Health Department of Hunan Province Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Clinical Laboratory, Hunan Provincial Second People’s Hospital, 427 of Furong road of Changsha, Changsha, Hunan, 410007, China

    Biqiong Ren, Guoying Zou, Guofeng Xu, Fei Xu, Junyu He & Haowen Zhu

  2. Clinical Medical School, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Changsha, Hunan, 410007, China

    Biqiong Ren, Guoying Zou, Yiran Huang, Guofeng Xu, Fei Xu, Junyu He & Haowen Zhu

  3. Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, 410078, China

    Biqiong Ren, Guoying Zou, Junyu He & Ping Yu

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  1. Biqiong Ren
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  2. Guoying Zou
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  3. Yiran Huang
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  4. Guofeng Xu
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Correspondence to Biqiong Ren.

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The study complied with the Declaration of Helsinki and was reviewed and granted ethical approval by the Ethics Committee of the Second People’s Hospital of Hunan Province.

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Ren, B., Zou, G., Huang, Y. et al. Serum levels of HSP70 and other DAMP proteins can aid in patient diagnosis after traumatic injury. Cell Stress and Chaperones 21, 677–686 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12192-016-0694-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12192-016-0694-4

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