IL6 and ischemic stroke: Figure 2C shows the results of IL-6 assey in plasma from patients and healthy volunteers, representing that the IL-6 level in ischemic stroke patients is higher than healthy control subjects. In co-culture with HMGB1, the cytokine assay showed that the IL-17, IL-6 and IL-33 levels were significantly elevated in both groups, when stimulated by HMGB1 after a 12-hour incubation (Fig. 2D).