Skip to main content
Download PDF

Volume 19 Supplement 1

35th International Symposium on Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine

Pyruvate dehydrogenase levels are low in sepsis

Critical Care volume 19, Article number: P33 (2015) Cite this article

Introduction

Pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH) is a key component of aerobic metabolism. Multiple rodent studies have shown that PDH levels are low in sepsis. This leads to a shift to anaerobic metabolism, resulting in increased lactic acid. Alteration in PDH levels during sepsis, however, has never been studied in humans. The aim of this study was to identify whether PDH levels (activity and quantity) were altered in humans in sepsis.

Methods

We conducted a case-control study at a single urban tertiary care center. We compared PDH levels between sepsis and healthy control subjects by measuring PDH levels in peripheral blood mononuclear cells via a novel assay. We measured PDH levels in control subjects at baseline and in sepsis subjects at 0, 24, 48 and 72 hours.

Results

There were 39 sepsis (age 67 ± 14 years, M ± SD) and 19 control (age 50 ± 12 years) subjects of similar gender (56% and 63% female, respectively) and race (79% and 68% Caucasian, respectively). PDH levels in the sepsis group were significantly lower than the control group at all time points (Figures 1 and 2). After controlling for age, gender, race, and assay plate via multivariable linear regression, the effect of treatment group remained significant. We were unable to control for comorbid illness, which was exclusively concentrated in the sepsis group.

figure1

Figure 1

figure2

Figure 2

Conclusion

PDH levels are significantly lowered in humans during sepsis when compared with healthy controls, even when controlling for age, race and gender. Further research is needed to determine whether this finding persists after adjustment for comorbid disease, and whether lower PDH levels are associated with clinical outcomes.

Author information

Affiliations

  1. Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA

    E Nuzzo, X Liu, K Berg, L Andersen & M Doninno

Authors
  1. E Nuzzo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. X Liu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. K Berg
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. L Andersen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. M Doninno
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to E Nuzzo.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Nuzzo, E., Liu, X., Berg, K. et al. Pyruvate dehydrogenase levels are low in sepsis. Crit Care 19, P33 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1186/cc14113

Download citation

Keywords

  • Control Subject
  • Lactic Acid
  • Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cell
  • Care Center
  • Tertiary Care

Critical Care

ISSN: 1364-8535