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Sharma S, Bhardwaj A, Dwivedi P, Yadav SS, Shamim MA, Singh S, Sharma PP, Ambwani S, SIngh K. Apremilast Add-On Benefits Over Conventional Drugs (ABCD) in Unstable Non-segmental Vitiligo: A 12-Week Single-Center Randomized Controlled Trial. Cureus 2023; 15:e37180. [PMID: 37153322 PMCID: PMC10162885 DOI: 10.7759/cureus.37180] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/05/2023] [Indexed: 04/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Apremilast is an oral phosphodiesterase-4 enzyme inhibitor that modulates the immune system by increasing intracellular cyclic adenosine monophosphate levels and inhibiting inflammatory cytokines synthesis. We aimed to compare the efficacy and safety of add-on apremilast in combination therapy with standard treatment in patients with unstable, non-segmental vitiligo. Methods The study was a 12-week randomized, controlled, parallel-group, open-labeled trial. The control group received standard treatment (n=15), and the intervention group received 30 mg apremilast twice daily in addition to standard treatment (n= 16). Time to the first sign of re-pigmentation, halt in progression, and change in vitiligo area scoring index (VASI) score is the primary outcomes. Normality was assessed, and appropriate parametric and nonparametric tests were undertaken. Results Thirty-seven participants were randomized into two groups, and analysis was done on thirty-one participants. Over the treatment duration of 12 weeks, the median time to observe the first sign of re-pigmentation was four weeks in the add-on apremilast group compared to seven weeks in the control group (p=0.018). The halt in progression was observed more in the add-on Apremilast group (93.75%) compared to the control group (66.66%) (p=0.08). The VASI score decreased by 1.24 in the add-on apremilast group and 0.05 in the control group (p= 0.754). Parameters including body surface area, dermatology life quality index, and body mass index reduced significantly, while the visual analog scale increased significantly in the add-on apremilast group. However, results were comparable between groups. Conclusions Treatment with add-on apremilast accelerated clinical improvement. It also reduced disease progression and improved the disease index among participants. However, add-on apremilast had a lower tolerability profile than the control group.
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Papaccio F, Bellei B, Ottaviani M, D’Arino A, Truglio M, Caputo S, Cigliana G, Sciuto L, Migliano E, Pacifico A, Iacovelli P, Picardo M. A Possible Modulator of Vitiligo Metabolic Impairment: Rethinking a PPARγ Agonist. Cells 2022; 11:cells11223583. [PMID: 36429011 PMCID: PMC9688513 DOI: 10.3390/cells11223583] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2022] [Revised: 11/04/2022] [Accepted: 11/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Vitiligo is a complex disease wherein derangements in multiple pathways determine the loss of functional melanocytes. Since its pathogenesis is not yet completely understood, vitiligo lacks a definitive safe and efficacious treatment. At present, different therapies are available; however, each modality has its baggage of disadvantages and side effects. Recently we have described several metabolic abnormalities in cells from pigmented skin of vitiligo patients, including alterations of glucose metabolism. Therefore, we conducted a study to evaluate the effect of Pioglitazone (PGZ), a Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPARγ) agonist, on cells from pigmented vitiligo skin. We treated vitiligo melanocytes and fibroblasts with low doses of PGZ and evaluated the effects on mitochondrial alterations, previously reported by our and other groups. Treatment with PGZ significantly increased mRNA and protein levels of several anaerobic glycolytic enzymes, without increasing glucose consumption. The PGZ administration fully restored the metabolic network, replacing mitochondrial membrane potential and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) copy number. These effects, together with a significant increase in ATP content and a decrease in reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, provide strong evidence of an overall improvement of mitochondria bioenergetics in vitiligo cells. Moreover, the expression of HMGB1, Hsp70, defined as a part of DAMPs, and PD-L1 were significantly reduced. In addition, PGZ likely reverts premature senescence phenotype. In summary, the results outline a novel mode of action of Pioglitazone, which may turn out to be relevant to the development of effective new vitiligo therapeutic strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Federica Papaccio
- Cutaneous Physiopathology and Integrated Center of Metabolomics Research, San Gallicano Dermatological Institute, IRCCS, 00144 Rome, Italy
- Correspondence: (F.P.); (M.P.)
| | - Barbara Bellei
- Cutaneous Physiopathology and Integrated Center of Metabolomics Research, San Gallicano Dermatological Institute, IRCCS, 00144 Rome, Italy
| | - Monica Ottaviani
- Cutaneous Physiopathology and Integrated Center of Metabolomics Research, San Gallicano Dermatological Institute, IRCCS, 00144 Rome, Italy
| | - Andrea D’Arino
- Cutaneous Physiopathology and Integrated Center of Metabolomics Research, San Gallicano Dermatological Institute, IRCCS, 00144 Rome, Italy
| | - Mauro Truglio
- Cutaneous Physiopathology and Integrated Center of Metabolomics Research, San Gallicano Dermatological Institute, IRCCS, 00144 Rome, Italy
| | - Silvia Caputo
- Cutaneous Physiopathology and Integrated Center of Metabolomics Research, San Gallicano Dermatological Institute, IRCCS, 00144 Rome, Italy
| | - Giovanni Cigliana
- Clinical Pathology Unit, Department of Research, Advanced Diagnostics, and Technological Innovation, Translational Research Area, IRCCS Regina Elena National Cancer Institute, 00144 Rome, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Sciuto
- Cutaneous Physiopathology and Integrated Center of Metabolomics Research, San Gallicano Dermatological Institute, IRCCS, 00144 Rome, Italy
| | - Emilia Migliano
- Plastic and Regenerative Surgery, San Gallicano Dermatological Institute, IRCCS, 00144 Rome, Italy
| | - Alessia Pacifico
- Phototherapy Unit, San Gallicano Dermatological Institute, IRCCS, 00144 Rome, Italy
| | - Paolo Iacovelli
- Phototherapy Unit, San Gallicano Dermatological Institute, IRCCS, 00144 Rome, Italy
| | - Mauro Picardo
- Cutaneous Physiopathology and Integrated Center of Metabolomics Research, San Gallicano Dermatological Institute, IRCCS, 00144 Rome, Italy
- Correspondence: (F.P.); (M.P.)
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Enkhtaivan E, Lee CH. Role of Amine Neurotransmitters and Their Receptors in Skin Pigmentation: Therapeutic Implication. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22158071. [PMID: 34360837 PMCID: PMC8348573 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22158071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2021] [Revised: 07/09/2021] [Accepted: 07/24/2021] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Skin pigmentation can occur due to increased melanin, including melanocyte proliferation, melanin biosynthesis, or melanocyte migration. There are many factors that influence the melanin production process, but the role of neurotransmitters in this process is still unclear. We found that histamine and serotonin influence the different stages of melanogenesis and melanogenesis, which increase melanogenesis. Since then, several related papers have been published, and from these papers, it has been recognised that the role of neurotransmitters in skin-pigment-related diseases needs to be summarised. By introducing the role of neurotransmitters in the regulation of various pigment disorders, including vitiligo and melasma, through this review, many researchers can be expected to try to apply neurotransmitter-related agonists and antagonists as treatments for skin pigment disorders.
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Yang Q, Zhang G, Su M, Leung G, Lui H, Zhou P, Wu Y, Zhou J, Xu J, Zhang X, Zhou Y. Vitiligo Skin Biomarkers Associated With Favorable Therapeutic Response. Front Immunol 2021; 12:613031. [PMID: 33815367 PMCID: PMC8015777 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.613031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/01/2020] [Accepted: 01/08/2021] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Vitiligo is an acquired depigmentation skin disease caused by immune-mediated death of melanocytes. The most common treatment for vitiligo is narrow band ultraviolet B phototherapy, which often is combined with topical therapies such as tacrolimus. However, patients' responses to these treatments show large variations. To date, the mechanism for this heterogeneity is unknown, and there are no molecular indicators that can predict an individual patient's response to therapy. The goal of this study is to identify clinical parameters and gene expression biomarkers associated with vitiligo response to therapy. Six patients with segmental vitiligo and 30 patients with non-segmental vitiligo underwent transcriptome sequencing of lesional and nonlesional skin at baseline before receiving combined UBUVB and tacrolimus therapy for 6 month, and were separated into good response and bad response groups based on target lesion achieving > 10% repigmentation or not. Our study revealed that treatment-responsive vitiligo lesions had significantly shorter disease duration compared with non-responsive vitiligo lesions (2.5 years vs 11.5 years, p=0.046, t-Test), while showing no significant differences in the age, gender, ethnicity, vitiligo subtype, or disease severity. Transcriptomic analyses identified a panel of 68 genes separating the good response from bad response lesions including upregulation of immune active genes, such as CXCL10, FCRL3, and TCR, Further, compared with vitiligo lesions with long disease duration, the lesions with short duration also have much higher level of expression of immune-active genes, including some (such as FCRL3 and TCR genes) that are associated with favorable therapeutic response. In conclusion, our study has identified clinical parameters such as short disease duration and a panel of immune active and other gene expression biomarkers that are associated with favorable response to immune suppressive NBUVB + tacrolimus therapy. These markers may be useful clinically for individualized therapeutic management of vitiligo patients in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qianli Yang
- Department of Dermatology and Skin Science, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
- Department of Dermatology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Guohong Zhang
- Department of Pathology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, China
| | - Mingwan Su
- Department of Dermatology and Skin Science, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Gigi Leung
- Department of Dermatology and Skin Science, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Harvey Lui
- Department of Dermatology and Skin Science, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Pingyu Zhou
- Shanghai Skin Hospital, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yan Wu
- Department of Dermatology, First Hospital, China Medical University, Shenyang, China
| | - Joshua Zhou
- Faculty of Dentistry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Jinhua Xu
- Department of Dermatology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- *Correspondence: Youwen Zhou, ; Jinhua Xu, ; Xuejun Zhang,
| | - Xuejun Zhang
- Department of Dermatology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Institute of Dermatology, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- *Correspondence: Youwen Zhou, ; Jinhua Xu, ; Xuejun Zhang,
| | - Youwen Zhou
- Department of Dermatology and Skin Science, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
- *Correspondence: Youwen Zhou, ; Jinhua Xu, ; Xuejun Zhang,
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