Pro-inflammatory cytokines among individuals with skin findings long-term after sulfur mustard exposure: Sardasht-Iran Cohort Study.
Sulfur mustard (SM) is a potent alkylating vesicant warfare chemical agent which causes severe damages to the interface organs, skin, lungs and eyes. The most common chronic skin lesions are mustard scars, xerosis, eczema, seborrheic dermatitis, cherry angioma and hyperpigmentation. This study is part of Sardasht-Iran Cohort Study (SICS) which was performed to compare the serum levels of inflammatory cytokines in SM-exposed individuals (n=372) with long-term relevant skin findings versus unexposed controls (n=128). Serum levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines including IL-1α, IL-1β, IL-1Ra, IL-6, and TNF (tumor necrosis factor) were titrated using ELISA method, 79.9% (n=290) of the exposed group and 60.5% (n=98) of the control group showed skin findings. In the exposed group, 52.1% (n=189) had only skin findings (OSFE) and in the control group, 32% (n=41) had no problem (NC, normal). Median serum levels of cytokines IL-1α, IL-1β, IL-1Ra, IL-6 and TNF-α in the OSFE group were: 1.077, 1.745, 25.640, 0.602 and 12.768 pg/ml, respectively. These values in normal controls were 1.889, 1.896, 32.190, 1.022 and 23.786 pg/ml, respectively which are higher than the corresponding values in the OSFE group, the differences were statistically significant only for IL-1α and TNF-α. This may be due to a damage incurred upon precursors of cytokine producing cells or failure of their functions, increase in suppressive mediators or other mechanisms which are not well known. More studies are needed in molecular dimensions of the immune and cytokine responses in the SM-exposed patients.
Immunoregulation Research Center, Shahed University, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran; Department of Dermatology, Shahed University, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran.
Athar
A
Moin
Ali
A
Khamesipour
Zuhair Mohammad
ZM
Hassan
Massoumeh
M
Ebtekar
Seyyed-Masoud
SM
Davoudi
Mohammad-Reza
MR
Vaez-Mahdavi
Mohammad-Reza
MR
Soroush
Soghrat
S
Faghihzadeh
Mohammad-Mehdi
MM
Naghizadeh
Tooba
T
Ghazanfari
D000328:Adult; D002619:Chemical Warfare Agents / Q000633:toxicity*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D016207:Cytokines / Q000097:blood*; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects; D006801:Humans; D007492:Iran / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009151:Mustard Gas / Q000633:toxicity*; D012871:Skin Diseases / Q000097:blood* / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult
D002619:Chemical Warfare Agents; D016207:Cytokines; D009151:Mustard Gas
Cytokines; Inflammatory; Skin; Sulfur mustard