Chemerin and calprotectin levels correlate with disease activity and inflammation markers in psoriasis vulgaris

Heterogeneous effects of S100 proteins during cell interactions between immune cells and stromal cells from synovium or skin

Cell interactions represent an important mechanism involved in the pathogenesis of chronic inflammation. The key S100 proteins A8 and A9 have been studied in several models of chronic inflammatory diseases with highly heterogeneous conclusions. In this context, the aim of this study was to determine the role of cell interactions on S100 protein production and their effect on cytokine production during cell interactions, between immune and stromal cells from synovium or skin. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) were cultured alone or with synoviocytes or skin fibroblasts, with or without phytohemagglutinin, exogenous A8, A9, A8/A9 proteins or anti-A8/A9 antibody. Production of IL-6, IL-1β, IL-17, TNF, A8, A9, and A8/A9 was measured by ELISA. Cell interactions with synoviocytes had no effect on A8, A9, or A8/A9 secretion, while cell interactions with skin fibroblasts decreased A8 production. This highlights the importance of stromal cell origin. The addition of S100 proteins in co-cultures with synoviocytes did not increase the production of IL-6, IL-17, or IL-1β, except for an increase of IL-6 secretion with A8. The presence of anti-S100A8/A9 antibody did not show obvious effects. Low concentration or absence of serum in the culture medium decreased the production of IL-17, IL-6, and IL-1β but despite these conditions, the addition of S100 proteins did not increase cytokine secretion. In conclusion, the role of A8/A9 in cell interactions during chronic inflammation appears complex and heterogeneous, depending on multiple factors, notably the origin of stromal cells that can affect their secretion.

Where Microneedle Meets Biomarkers: Futuristic Application for Diagnosing and Monitoring Localized External Organ Diseases

Extracellular tissue fluids are interesting biomatrices that have recently attracted scientists' interest. Many significant biomarkers for localized external organ diseases have been isolated from this biofluid. In the diagnostic and disease monitoring context, measuring biochemical entities from the fluids surrounding the diseased tissues may give more important clinical value than measuring them at a systemic level. Despite all these facts, pushing tissue fluid-based diagnosis and monitoring forward to clinical settings faces one major problem: its accessibility. Most extracellular tissue fluid, such as interstitial fluid (ISF), is abundant but hard to collect, and the currently available technologies are invasive and expensive. This is where novel microneedle technology can help tackle this significant obstacle. The ability of microneedle technology to minimally invasively access tissue fluid-containing biomarkers will enable ISF and other tissue fluid utilization in the clinical diagnosis and monitoring of localized diseases. This review attempts to present the current pursuit of the application of microneedle systems as a diagnostic and monitoring platform, along with the recent progress of biomarker detection in diagnosing and monitoring localized external organ diseases. Then, the potential use of various microneedles in future clinical diagnostics and monitoring of localized diseases is discussed by presenting the currently studied cases.

Novel archetype in psoriasis management bridging molecular dynamics in exploring novel therapies

Psoriasis is an autoimmune chronic inflammatory condition of skin affecting 125 million populaces around the globe. It is implicated as a result of multifaceted phenomena involving various cell and subcell activities with the aid of numerous cellular and molecular components including signaling aisle and regulatory proteins owing to the development of such hyperproliferative dermatological conditions. This involves a deeply complex and conflicting pathology owing to genetic and immunological deviations resulting from the unusual presentation of different signaling pathways and regulatory proteins. Explorations of these biomarkers and intervention of molecular and cellular processes in psoriasis are yet to be investigated and could be an exceptional aspect for understanding pathology with successful targeting of disease. In the presented study, we have integrated molecular insights, including signaling molecules, pathways, and proteins implicated in pathogenesis, and we have attempted to link this knowledge to the targeting of these phenomena in order to manage the conditions precisely. Further, therapeutic delivery approaches for targeting distinct layers of skin have also been investigated based on the application of different nanocarriers for successful psoriasis treatment.

Estimation of neutrophil activation marker in lichen planus patients

BACKGROUND

Lichen planus disease is a chronic inflammatory disorder of mucosal and cutaneous tissues, and its etiology and pathogenesis are unclear. Cytokines have a significant role in the beginning, the maintenance of inflammatory and intercellular crosstalk.

AIM

We assessed serum levels of neutrophil activation marker (calprotectin) in patients with cutaneous lichen planus with different subtypes and made a comparison with healthy individuals.

MATERIALS AND METHOD

Peripheral blood samples of 30 cases with lichen planus were compared with 30 healthy individuals. Serum samples were prepared from LP patients, using a commercial ELISA kit, and calprotectin level was measured in each serum sample.

RESULTS

The serum level of calprotectin was significantly raised in LP cases compared with control (141.34 ± 17.47 ng/ml versus 40.03 ± 1.54 ng/ml respectively; p < 0.001). No correlation was recorded among of serum of calprotectin and patients' ages, sex, disease period, and the existence or strength of pruritus. But a strong positive correlation was present between the coexistence of oral lesions and the number of locations.

CONCLUSION

Calprotectin can be used as a marker of Lichen planus severity and progression. Calprotectin may play a role in the pathogenesis of LP.

Deletion of S100a8 and S100a9 Enhances Skin Hyperplasia and Promotes the Th17 Response in Imiquimod-Induced Psoriasis

High concentrations of the damage-associated molecular patterns S100A8 and S100A9 are found in skin and serum from patients suffering from psoriasis, an IL-17-related disease. Notably, although the expression of these proteins correlates with psoriatic disease severity, the exact function of S100A8 and S100A9 in psoriasis pathogenesis remains unclear. In this study, we investigated the role of S100A8 and S100A9 in psoriasis-associated skin hyperplasia and immune responses using S100a8-/- and S100a9-/- mice in an imiquimod-induced model of psoriasis. We found that S100a8-/- and S100a9-/- psoriatic mice exhibit worsened clinical symptoms relative to wild-type mice and increased expression of S100A9 and S100A8 proteins in keratinocytes, respectively. In addition, the loss of S100A8 enhances proliferation of keratinocytes and disrupts keratinocyte differentiation. We further detected elevated production of IL-17A and -F from CD4+ T cells in the absence of S100A8 and S100A9, as well as increased infiltration of neutrophils in the skin. In addition, treatment with anti-IL-17A and -F was found to reduce psoriasis symptoms and skin hyperplasia in S100a8-/- and S100a9-/- mice. These data suggest that S100A8 and S100A9 regulate psoriasis by inhibiting production of IL-17A and -F, thereby, to our knowledge, providing new insights into their biological functions.

Serum Calprotectin and Chemerin Concentrations as Markers of Low-Grade Inflammation in Prepubertal Children with Obesity

In adults, obesity is associated with chronic low-grade inflammation, which may cause long-term adverse health consequences. We evaluated whether obesity in prepubertal children also generates this kind of inflammation and whether calprotectin and chemerin may be useful markers for early detection of such inflammation in this group of children. The study population included 83 children aged 2 to 10 years; 62 with obesity and without components of metabolic syndrome and 21 healthy controls with normal body weight. White blood cell (WBC) count, concentrations of C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), calprotectin, and chemerin were determined in peripheral blood. Our study showed that in the group with obesity, serum concentrations of calprotectin and chemerin, as well as CRP were significantly higher as compared with the controls. We found a significant positive correlation between serum chemerin concentrations and BMI z-score (r = 0.33, p < 0.01) in children with obesity. Chemerin concentration was also positively correlated with CRP level (r = 0.36, p < 0.01) in the whole group of children. These findings suggest that obesity may generate chronic low-grade inflammation as early as in the prepubertal period which can be indicated by significantly higher serum concentrations of calprotectin and chemerin. Calprotectin and especially chemerin seem to be promising indicators of this type of inflammation in children with obesity, but the correlation between these markers requires further research.

The Risk of Chronic Pancreatitis in Patients with Psoriasis: A Population-Based Cohort Study

Background

Psoriasis is a chronic systemic inflammatory disorder, and studies have revealed its association with a variety of comorbidities. However, the risk of chronic pancreatitis (CP) in psoriasis has not been studied. This study aimed to investigate the risk of CP among patients with psoriasis.

Methods

Using the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database, this population-based cohort study enrolled 48430 patients with psoriasis and 193720 subjects without psoriasis. Stratified Cox proportional hazards models were used to compare the risks of CP between the patients with and without psoriasis.

Results

The incidence of CP was 0.61 per 1000 person-years in patients with psoriasis and 0.34 per 1000 person-years in controls during a mean 6.6-year follow-up period. Before adjustment, patients with psoriasis had a significantly higher risk of CP (crude hazard ratio (HR) = 1.81; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.53–2.15), and the risk remained significantly higher after adjustments for gender, age group, medications, and comorbidities (adjusted HR (aHR) = 1.76; 95% CI = 1.47–2.10). All psoriasis patient subgroups other than those with arthritis, including those with mild and severe psoriasis and those without arthritis, had significantly increased aHRs for CP, and the risk increased with increasing psoriasis severity. Psoriasis patients taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (aHR = 0.33; 95% CI = 0.22–0.49) and methotrexate (aHR = 0.28; 95% CI = 0.12–0.64) had a lower risk of developing CP after adjustments.

Conclusions

Psoriasis is associated with a significantly increased risk of CP. The results of our study call for more research to provide additional insight into the relationship between psoriasis and CP.