Assessment of Interleukin-30 in Iraqi Female Patients with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis

Abstract

Background: Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is a chronic lymphocytic autoimmune thyroid disease that results in gradual destruction of the thyroid gland. Interleukin-30 (IL-30) is one of the interleukins that controls inflammatory response since it enhances T-reg cells' suppressive function and induces IL-10 production. The aim of this study was to assess the serum level of IL-30 as an indicator for understanding the pathology of this autoimmune disorder.

Subjects and Methods: A single-center, case-control study was carried out on Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis patients who were admitted to the department of medicine at Al-Yarmook Teaching Hospital and Baghdad Teaching Hospital, Baghdad, Iraq, between January 2024 and June 2024. Serum levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), antithyroglobulin antibody (anti-TG Abs), antithyroid peroxidase antibody (TPO Ab), and IL-30 were measured in control (n=21) and patient (n=40) groups, all are determined by sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits.

Results: Serum TSH, TPO Ab, and TG Ab are significantly higher in the patient group (p<0.0001), whereas serum IL-30 decreases significantly (p<0.0001). There was a significant correlation between serum IL-30 and serum TPO Abs levels (p=0.001), while there was a negative correlation between the severity of hypothyroidism and serum IL-30 (P<0.05).

Conclusion: Serum IL-30 level is associated with the pathogenesis of autoimmune thyroiditis. There is a negative correlation between serum IL-30 and the degree of hypothyroidism. Moreover, a decrease in serum IL-30 level can be considered a predictor for autoimmune thyroiditis.