Search results for "Psoriasis"
showing 10 items of 193 documents
Serum levels of interleukin-18 and s-ICAM-1 in patients affected by psoriasis: preliminary considerations.
2003
Objective To find new aspects of the systemic involvement of the Immune System in psoriasis, we determined serum levels of interleukin-18 (IL-18) (Th1-inducing factor cytokine), CD30 (Th2 marker) and sICAM-1 (adhesion molecule). In addition we evaluated the correlation between these molecules and psoriasis area and severity index (PASI). Background Psoriasis is associated to an overexpression of Th1 cytokines and a relative underexpression of Th2 cytokines. IL-18 plays an important role in inducing Th1 response because it is a potent inductor of synthesis of IFN-γ, TNF and other mediators. The two major sources of IL-18 are monocytes and macrophages but also human keratinocytes constitutive…
Gene expression profiling of peripheral blood mononuclear cells in endometriosis identifies genes altered in non-gynaecologic chronic inflammatory di…
2011
background: Pelvic inflammatory phenomena have been suggested as critical players in the natural history of endometriosis. However, to what extent these events could affect the systemic immunologic status remains to be clarified. Here, we compared the gene expression profile in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from endometriosis patients in the severe diseased stage with the profile after a conventional surgical treatment for removal of endometriotic lesions and adhesions.   methods: Microarray analysis included four patients suffering from severe endometriosis in which blood samples were obtained few days before the surgical intervention and again 6 months later. Real-time quantitative…
Soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 levels in patients with psoriasis.
1993
A newly developed ELISA was used to detect and quantify the presence of a soluble form of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (sICAM-1) in the circulation of healthy individuals compared with patients with psoriasis vulgaris. Seventeen psoriatic patients were studied. The extent of skin lesions was rated by the psoriasis area and severity index (PASI). Seventeen age- and sex-matched healthy individuals served as controls. Serum levels were measured by an ELISA technique utilizing an anti-ICAM-1 murine monoclonal antibody bound to the solid phase, and a second, peroxidase-conjugated monoclonal antibody reacting with sICAM-1. Serum levels in controls were 358.8 +/- 87.9 ng/ml sICAM-1, and 480.5…
Chemical Constituents and Pharmacological Properties ofPoria cocos
2011
Poria cocos (Polyporaceae) is a saprophytic fungus that grows in diverse species of Pinus. Its sclerotium, called fu-ling or hoelen, is used in traditional Chinese and Japanese medicine for its diuretic, sedative, and tonic effects. Various studies of this fungus have demonstrated its marked anti-inflammatory activity in different experimental models of acute and chronic inflammation. It is widely used as a constituent of many preparations in Asian medicine, but the number of research papers on its clinical properties is insufficient for establishing its efficacy and safety from a scientific point of view. In this review, we have compiled all the published data concerning the chemistry, pha…
A TNF-α Promoter Polymorphism Is Associated with Juvenile Onset Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis
1997
Tumor necrosis factor-α is considered to be one of the important mediators in the pathogenesis of psoriasis. A strong association of juvenile onset psoriasis with the major histocompatibility complex encoded HLA-Cw6 antigen has been reported but it is unclear whether Cw6 itself or a closely linked gene is involved in the pathogenesis. This study has focused on the association of promoter polymorphisms of the major histocompatibility complex encoded tumor necrosis factor-α gene with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. Tumor necrosis factor-α promoter polymorphisms were sought by sequence-specific oligonucleotide hybridization and by direct sequencing in Caucasian patients with juvenile onset …
Platelet-neutrophil aggregates promote skin pathology in psoriasis
2019
AbstractPsoriasis is a frequent systemic inflammatory autoimmune disease characterized primarily by skin lesions with massive infiltration of leukocytes but frequently also presents with cardiovascular comorbidities. Especially polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMNs) abundantly infiltrate psoriatic skin but the cues that prompt PMNs to home to the skin are not well defined. To identify PMN surface receptors that may explain PMN skin homing in psoriasis patients, we screened 332 surface antigens on primary human blood PMNs from healthy donors and psoriasis patients. We identified platelet surface antigens as a defining feature of psoriasis PMNs, due to a significantly increased aggregation of n…
Isolation of T Cells from the Skin
2014
T cells can be found in skin under steady-state conditions as well as in inflammatory processes. T cells in skin play an important role in immune homeostasis as well as control of infectious, inflammatory diseases or tumors. In addition, several important and frequent skin diseases such as psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, autoimmune disease, and contact allergy are initiated by T cells. In skin diseases, the majority of antigen-specific T cells can be found in the tissue, not the peripheral blood. Here, we present a protocol suitable for isolation of skin-resident (inflammatory) T cells that can be used for an in-depth characterization of their frequency, function, and role for the respective …
Evolution of Cooperation Patterns in Psoriasis Research: Co-Authorship Network Analysis of Papers in Medline (1942–2013)
2015
BackgroundAlthough researchers have worked in collaboration since the origins of modern science and the publication of the first scientific journals in the eighteenth century, this phenomenon has acquired exceptional importance in the last several decades. Since the mid-twentieth century, new knowledge has been generated from within an ever-growing network of investigators, working cooperatively in research groups across countries and institutions. Cooperation is a crucial determinant of academic success.ObjectiveThe aim of the present paper is to analyze the evolution of scientific collaboration at the micro level, with regard to the scientific production generated on psoriasis research.Me…
Overexpression of bone morphogenetic protein-6 (BMP-6) in the epidermis of transgenic mice: inhibition or stimulation of proliferation depending on t…
1996
Bone morphogenetic protein-6 (BMP-6) belongs to the family of TGF-beta-related growth factors. In the developing epidermis, expression of BMP-6 coincides with the onset of stratification. Expression persists perinatally but declines after day 6 postpartum, although it can still be detected in adult skin by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis. We constitutively overexpressed BMP-6 in suprabasal layers of interfollicular epidermis in transgenic mice using a keratin 10 promoter. All mice expressing the transgene developed abnormalities in the skin, indicating an active transgene-derived factor. Depending on the pattern of transgene expression, the effects on proli…
Blue light irradiation suppresses dendritic cells activationin vitro
2013
Blue light is a UV-free irradiation suitable for treating chronic skin inflammation, for example, atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, and hand- and foot eczema. However, a better understanding of the mode of action is still missing. For this reason, we investigated whether dendritic cells (DC) are directly affected by blue light irradiation in vitro. Here, we report that irradiation neither induced apoptosis nor maturation of monocyte-derived and myeloid DC. However, subsequent DC maturation upon LPS/IFNγ stimulation was impaired in a dose-dependent manner as assessed by maturation markers and cytokine release. Moreover, the potential of this DC to induce cytokine secretion from allogeneic CD4 T …