TNF and Sepsis: In children with severe sepsis, 7 d of supplementation with VSL#3® was associated with significant reductions in the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-6 (p = 0.001), IL-12p70 (p = 0.001), IL-17 (p = 0.01), and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF- α) (p = 0.01) compared with the placebo group.90 The anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 and transforming growth factor-β1 were significantly increased (p = 0.02 and p = 0.01, respectively).