文本框: CHANGES IN THE SERUM NITRIC OXIDE AND TUMOR NECROSIS FACTOR-ALPHA IN INFANTS WITH ASTHMA Wen ZH, Xie QL, Jiao W, Hu QY, Nong LP The People’s Hospital of Guangxi Autonomous Region, Nanning, China Objective: To evaluate the dynamic changes of serum nitric oxide (NO) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-a) levels in infants with asthma and their clinical implication. Methods: Serum NO level was measured by chemical colorimetric method and TNF-a was detected by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay in 30 infants with asthma and 17 health children. Results: Serums NO and TNF-a levels increased markedly in the acute stage of asthma and were (103.46 ±63.37)μmol/L and (115.94±78.72) ng/L respectively (p<0.01), NO and TNF-a levels were (53.09±18.92) μmol/L and (43.88±19.96) ng/L with asthma were reduced to normal levels in the remission stage (p<0.01). Further more, there was a significant positive correlation between serum No and TNF-a (p<0.01). Conclusion: No and TNF-a may be involved in the inflammation of the respiratory tract,and they may play an important role in the pathogenesis of asthma in infants. 0745