## 4 Discussion  
Comparison of Serum Proinflammatory Mediators Level between Patients with Crohn's Disease and Ulcerative Colitis  
The aim of our study was to identify biomarkers, which could be used in the differential diagnosis of CD and UC. The conducted statistical analysis revealed a significant difference in the serum level of IL-1\(\alpha\), IL-12p70, and E- and P-selectin between the two groups of patients, indicating a potential use of the mentioned biomarkers in differentiating [PERSON]'s disease from ulcerative colitis. All of the mentioned parameters were upregulated in the group of patients with CD compared to the UC group. The increase in IL12p70 level in the serum of CD patients can be related to the excessive activation of both innate and adaptive immune cells. The activated innate cells like dendritic cells and macrophages secrete IL-12p70, which is engaged in the polarization of T-naive cells to Th1 cells, with the pathogen cells being characteristic for CD but not UC. This differentiation of T cells enable them to synthesize and release IFN-\(\gamma\), being one of the inductors of IL-12p70 synthesis, creating a positive feedback loop [18]. The observed increase in the active IL-12 form \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c} \hline \hline  & **The Activity of the Disease** & **The Activity of the Disease in** \\  & **in Patients with Crohn’s** & **Patients with Ulcerative Colitis** \\  & **Disease (CDAI Score)** & **(Mayo Endoscopic Score)** \\ \hline E-selectin [ng/mL] & \(p\) > 0.05 & \(p\) > 0.05 \\ \hline \(p\)-selectin [ng/mL] & \(p\) > 0.05 & \(p\) > 0.05 \\ \hline CCL-2 (MCP-1) [pg/mL] & \(p\) > 0.05 & **r = 0.566, \(p\) < 0.005** \\ \hline IL-1\(\alpha\) [pg/mL] & \(p\) > 0.05 & \(p\) > 0.05 \\ \hline IL-12p70 [pg/mL] & \(p\) > 0.05 & \(p\) > 0.05 \\ \hline TNF-\(\alpha\) [pg/mL] & \(p\) > 0.05 & **r = 0.431, \(p\) < 0.05** \\ \hline \end{tabular} Data with statistical significance are in bold.  
\end{table} 
Table 2: Relationship between analyzed proinflammatory mediators and disease activity in patients with [PERSON]’s disease and ulcerative colitis. \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c} \hline \hline  & **E-selectin** & **P-selectin** & **CCL-2 (MCP-1)** & **IL-1\(\alpha\)** \\ \hline IL-1\(\alpha\) & \(p\) > 0.05 & **r = 0.514; \(p\) < 0.05** & \(p\) > 0.05 \\ IL-12p70 & **r = 0.542, \(p\) < 0.05** & \(p\) > 0.05 & \(p\) > 0.05 \\ TNF-\(\alpha\) & **r = 0.372; \(p\) < 0.05** & \(p\) > 0.05 & **r = 0.550; \(p\) < 0.05** & **r = 0.637; \(p\) < 0.005** \\ \hline \end{tabular} The presented data were selected according to statistical significance. Data with statistical significance are in bold.  
\end{table} 
Table 3: Relationship between analyzed biomarkers in patients with ulcerative colitis. (IL-12p70) may be compared to the results of [PERSON] et al. 's [19] study, in which the expression of that cytokine was assessed in the mononuclear cells of the intestinal lamina propria collected from CD and UC patients. The expression of active IL-12 in the samples from CD patients was elevated compared to the UC and control groups, which seems to be consistent with our results. Both ours and [PERSON] et al. 's studies indicate crucial differences in the IL-12p70 profile in circulation and at the tissue level between [PERSON]'s disease and ulcerative colitis. Given the satisfactory value of IL-12p70 to differentiate CD from UC, this parameter may be useful in the diagnosis of these two types of IBD. The conducted statistical analyses revealed a significant increase in E- and P-selectin levels among patients with CD in comparison to the UC group. Considering that P-selectin can be expressed by both platelets and endothelial cells, we have analyzed the correlation between serum P-selectin level and platelet count in CD and UC patients. The conducted analyses revealed a significant moderate correlation between the P-selectin and platelet count, but only in group of patients with [PERSON]'s disease.