Elevated type-17 cytokines are present in axial spondyloarthritis stool

Summary: Axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) is characterized by type-17 immune-driven joint inflammation, and intestinal inflammation is present in around 70% of patients. In this study, we asked whether axSpA stool contained Th17-associated cytokines and whether this related to systemic Th17 activation. We measured stool cytokine and calprotectin levels by ELISA and found that patients with axSpA have increased stool IL-17A, IL-23, GM-CSF, and calprotectin. We further identified increased levels of circulating IL-17A+ and IL-17F+ T-helper cell lymphocytes in patients with axSpA compared to healthy donors. We finally assessed stool metabolites by unbiased nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and found that multiple stool amino acids were negatively correlated with stool IL-23 concentrations. These data provide evidence of type-17 immunity in the intestinal lumen, and suggest its association with microbial metabolism in the intestine.