Abstract: Objective: To detect the levels of interleukin-27 (IL-27) and interferon-γ(IFN-γ) in pleural effusion,and to explore the values of IL-27 and IFN-γ in the diagnosis of tuberculous pleuritis.Methods: A total of 88 patients with pleural effusion were selected and divided into tuberculous pleural effusion (TPE) group(n=44),malignant pleural effusion group(n=20),parapneumonia pleural effusion group(n=12), and transudative pleural effusion group(n=12).The levels of IL-27, IFN-γ and adenosine deaminase(ADA) in pleural effusion of the patients in various groups were detected; the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was drawn to evaluate their diagnostic values for tuberculous pleuritis.Results: The levels of IL-27 and IFN-γ in pleural effusion of the patients in TPE group were significantly higher than the other three groups(P<0.05).The areas under ROC curve (AUC) of IL-27, IFN-γ and ADA in pleural effusion in diagnosis of tuberculous pleuritis were 0.96, 0.79 and 0.92, respectively;the specificities were 94.4%, 89.5% and 92.1%, respectively;the sensitivities were 100%, 61.4% and 78.6%,respectively.The specificity (97.4%) of combined detection of IL-27, IFN-γ and ADA was higher than those of single detection.Conclusion: The levels of IL-27, IFN-γ and ADA in pleural effusion can be used as an effective method to the differential diagnosis of tuberculous pleuritis.Detection of IL-27 in pleural effusion has a higher diagnostic value for tuberculous pleuritis than IFN-γ and ADA.Combined detection of IL-27, IFN-γ and ADA has the important value in the diagnosis of tuberculous pleuritis.

Key words: tuberculous pleuritis, interleukin-27, interferon-γ, adenosine deaminase