Investigation of asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) level in brucellosis patients

ABSTRACT Investigation of Asymmetric Dimethylarginine (ADMA) Level in Brucellosis Patients Introduction and Aim : Asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) is the main endogenous inhibitor of nitric oxide synthase (NOS). NOS plays an important role in host defense and the maintenance of vascular stracture. High ADMA levels have been associated with endothelial dysfunction and have been implicated in a variety of diseases. Brucellosis is a zoonotic disease caused by Brucella spp, which can be manifested as vasculopathy. However, there are no sufficient data regarding the relationship between ADMA and brucellosis. The aim of our study was to investigate ADMA levels in brucellosis patients and healthy control group. Material and Method : Our study enrolled 40 healthy volunteers and 40 patients with brucellosis. Serum ADMA levels in brucellosis patients and healthy volunteers were investigated with the Human ADMA ELISA kit (Cusabio, Wuhan, China) according to the manufacturer's recommendation. Physical examinations of the participants were carried out and the demographic characteristics including the gender, age and residence addresses and the laboratory test results were recorded. IBM SPSS 19 statistical package program was used to evaluate the data. Statistical significance level (p< 0.05) and (p< 0.01) were accepted. Results : Out of 40 patients with brucellosis included in our study, 18 (45%) men and 22 (55%) were female, and the mean age was 49,2 ± 17,3 years. Out of 40 healthy volunteers in the control group, 18 (45%) men and 22 (55%) were female, and the mean age was 39,0 ±7,9 years. Serum ADMA concentrations in brucellosis and control group were; 262.6 ± 139.59 ng/ml and 196.52 ± 85.25 ng/ml, respectively. The brucellosis group yielded a statistically significant difference compared with control group (p = 0.013). Conclusion : In recent years, elevated ADMA levels have been associated with many diseases such as cardiovascular system diseases, diabetes mellitus, multiple organ failure, chronic renal failure. In our study, similar to the study of Mengeloglu et al., the level of ADMA was higher in the patient group with brucellosis than the control group. Thus, elevation in ADMA levels will provide opportunities to establish new interpretations of the role of brucellosis in vasculitis, with new contributions to the development of novel treatment methods. Key words: Asymmetric Dimethylarginine (ADMA), Brucellosis, ELISA (Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay)