title: Cyclosporin A (CyA) reduces sCD30 serum levels in atopic dermatitis: a possible new immune intervention.
abstract: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory skin disease frequently associated with asthma, rhinitis, and food allergy. Lymphocytes producing Th2-type cytokines (such as interleukin [IL]-3, IL-4, and IL-5) have been thought to have a key role in the pathogenesis of the disease. We have recently demonstrated that elevated serum levels of the soluble form of CD30 (sCD30), an activation marker of Th2-cell clones, correlates with disease activity in pediatric patients suffering from AD. Clinical trials have demonstrated that cyclosporin A (CyA) treatment resulted in significant improvement of clinical symptoms in patients affected with AD. In this study, we evaluated the role of CyA in modulating sCD30 release in a group of adult patients affected by severe AD treated with CyA at the dosage of 3.5 mg/kg body weight for 12 weeks. Our results demonstrated, in parallel with an improvement of clinical symptoms, a significant reduction of serum levels of both IL-4 and sCD30, thus suggesting that CyA can prevent the activation of Th2 cells observed in AD.
authors.affiliation: Department of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, San Filippo Neri Hospital, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Bottari
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Frezzolini
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ruffelli
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Puddu
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Fontana
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: De Pità
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D016572:Cyclosporine / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003876:Dermatitis, Atopic / Q000276:immunology* / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D007073:Immunoglobulin E / Q000097:blood; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015847:Interleukin-4 / Q000097:blood; D017730:Ki-1 Antigen / Q000097:blood*; D018418:Th2 Cells / Q000276:immunology; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D017730:Ki-1 Antigen; D015847:Interleukin-4; D007073:Immunoglobulin E; D016572:Cyclosporine