Serum concentrations of IL-2, IL-6, IL-12 and TNF-α in patients with alopecia areata.
Alopecia areata (AA) has been represented as a restricted T cell-mediated autoimmune disease. Several studies have shown that cytokines may play an important role in its pathogenesis although many pathways exist. We investigated cytokine (IL-2, IL-6, IL-12, and TNFα) levels in peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) of 105 patients with different grade and duration of alopecia areata, to confirm that T-cell responses in AA is regulated via mechanisms of peripheral T-cell tolerance. We observed that IL-12 levels are higher for patients with bigger extensions and tend to increase according to the duration of the AA; TNFα instead, is more related to the gender of the patients and to the duration. Therefore abnormalities in cytokines production, showed by our results, may suggest that T-cell responses in AA scalp are closely regulated via mechanisms of peripheral T-cell tolerance and therefore confirm that this disease has an immuno-pathogenesis. Our aim is to shed light upon the complexity of AA underlying mechanisms and indicate pathways that may suggest future treatments.
U.O.C. Clinica Dermatologica Dipartimento di Medicina Interna e Specialità Mediciane University of Rome "Sapeinza", Italy. alfredo.rossi@uniroma1.it
A
A
Rossi
C
C
Cantisani
M
M
Carlesimo
M
M
Scarnò
E
E
Scali
E
E
Mari
V
V
Garelli
C
C
Maxia
S
S
Calvieri
D000506:Alopecia Areata / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000276:immunology; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D018664:Interleukin-12 / Q000097:blood*; D007376:Interleukin-2 / Q000097:blood*; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D012384:Rome; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000097:blood*
D015415:Biomarkers; C508594:IL2 protein, human; C508600:IL6 protein, human; D007376:Interleukin-2; D015850:Interleukin-6; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D018664:Interleukin-12