SERUM SOLUBLE INTERLEUKIN-2 RECEPTOR IN HYPERTHYROID GRAVES-DISEASE AND EFFECT OF CARBIMAZOLE THERAPY

To study the activation of T lymphocytes in hyperthyroid Graves'disease, the serum concentrations of soluble interleukin 2 receptors (sIL2R) were determined during active thyrotoxicosis and following the return to a euthyroid state with carbimazole therapy. Serum sIL2R was measured by an enzyme linked immunoassay. The mean |Mp SD serum sIL2R concentration during untreated hyperthyroidism was elevated as compared with controls (919.1 |Mp 523.4 vs 374.2|Mp 189‐4 U/ml, P<0.005). However, after carbimazole therapy the serum sIL2R in euthyroid patients fell to 377–9 |Mp 90.3 U/ml, which did not differ from healthy controls. Serum sIL2R correlated significantly with the serum free T3 only during hyperthyroidism (r= 0.678, P < 0.01). Our study suggests that in‐vivo measurement of serum sIL2R released from activated T lymphocytes is a useful immunological indicator of disease activity. Copyright © 1990, Wiley Blackwell. All rights reserved