Patients with acquired immune deficiency syndrome, tumors, and ankylosing spondylitis were excluded from the study. After excision, two experienced pathologists examined the tissue samples. Samples were obtained after surgery, immediately frozen in liquid nitrogen, and maintained at 280uC until RNA extraction. Seventy herniated disc specimens were also collected from 70 patients who underwent surgery for intervertebral disc herniation. These patients were included in the ID herniation group. Ten fresh human cadaver intervertebral disc specimens were assigned to the control group. The specimens were obtained within 10 h after death. Patients with spinal diseases were excluded from the control group. The following data were collected for the three groups: age, gender, employment, smoking habits, pain intensity, level of intervertebral disc herniation, duration of symptoms, C-reactive protein levels, and erythrocyte sedimentation rates. All relevant data for the three groups are listed in Table 1. There were no significant differences for the data among the three groups. TB is the leading cause of death from a curable infectious disease in China. The prevalence of active pulmonary tuberculosis in 2010 was 459 per 100,000 people. In 3�C5% of cases of active TB, osteolytic skeletal lesions develop; these occur mainly on the vertebrae. The typical bone lesion for TB is destruction of the anterior region of vertebral bodies and intervertebral discs with a subsequent collapse of the spine. Tuberculous vertebral bodies and intervertebral discs usually affect spinal stabilization, leading to deterioration of the patient��s condition. In this study, investigations of spinal TB focused on the transcript LY 225910 levels of ILs in tuberculous intervertebral disc specimens, which were important for the inflammatory and immune mechanisms involved in the development of TB. Specifically, the mRNA levels of ILs were thoroughly SB 204741 analyzed by quantitative real-time PCR, and their correlation with the clinicopathological profile of patients with tuberculous intervertebral discs was examined. There are many articles published on the expression levels of ILs in human TB. Using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay or PCR techniques, Valdes et al examined the expression levels of IL-27 in patients with TB. The authors found that IL-27 levels were significantly higher in the tuberculous pleural effusions group. Similarly, Rovina et al identified increased IL-18 activity in the pleural effusions of patients with TB compared to control specimens.