Serum soluble E-cadherin is a new potential marker for assessing the severity of gout

Objective Currently, millions of people suffer from gout-related disorders, which cause a great economic and health burden worldwide. However, so far, there is no effective serum marker to evaluate the severity of gout. Over the years, more and more experimental data have demonstrated that soluble E-cadherin (sE-cadherin) may act as a pivotal regulator involving in the initiation and development of various types of diseases. Unfortunately, the precise role of sE-cadherin in gout-related complications remains to be investigated. Methods In this work, we try to investigate the potential function of E-cadherin in patients with gout-related disorders. Serum sE-cadherin levels and other clinical parameters, from 37 patients with hyperuricaemia, 107 patients diagnosed with gout, 76 gout arthritis patients and 125 healthy adults were analysed in this study. Results Here, we firstly show that sE-cadherin levels are significantly elevated in gout patients and gout flare patients compared to those in healthy subjects, and that there is no significant difference between patients with hyperuricaemia and control group. Next, to further our understanding of how sE-cadherin acts as a new marker for assessing the severity of gout-related diseases, we find that serum sE-cadherin values are significantly positively correlated with the serum inflammatory markers, including hsCRP and IL-1 beta in patients with gout and gout flare. We also present evidence that serum sE-cadherin values are associated with oxidative stress in patients with gout-related complications. This is perhaps best illustrated by the observation that serum sE-cadherin values are significantly correlated with oxidative markers including SOD and soluble NOX2. Conclusion Taken together, our findings strongly support the idea that serum sE-cadherin levels may be a new candidate biomarker for evaluating and stratifying the severity of gout-related complications.