Normative levels of Interleukin 16 in umbilical cord blood

Objectives: The need for early and accurate prediction of outcome in hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy (HIE) remains critical. We have previously demonstrated that Interleukin 16 (IL-16) is raised in the umbilical cord blood (UCB) of infants with moderate and severe HIE and has the potential to be developed as a predictive biomarker. Normal reference ranges for IL-16 in UCB have not been previously described. The aim of this study was to determine normative levels of IL-16 in full term neonates using UCB following uncomplicated deliveries and to examine the effect of labour on cord IL-16 values. Design and methods: Full term infants were recruited as part of an ongoing birth cohort study, the Cork BASELINE Birth Cohort Study. All had UCB drawn and bio-banked at. 80. °C, within 3. hours of birth. Samples for this experiment were chosen from this population based cohort study to represent uncomplicated pre-labour caesarean sections and spontaneous vaginal deliveries. Analysis was performed on plasma EDTA, using ELISA Quantikine® (R&D Systems, Europe). Results: Samples were analysed from 48 infants with two modes of delivery; spontaneous vaginal delivery (n= 12 male, n= 12 female) and elective caesarean section (n= 12 male, n= 12 female). The range of all samples was normally distributed between 87.0 and 114.6. pg/ml. Overall mean (SD) for IL-16 was 102.9 (21.5) pg/ml. Levels were not affected by spontaneous vaginal delivery or gender. Conclusion: For the first time we have described the expected range of cord plasma IL-16 levels in healthy term infants following pre-labour and post-labour delivery.