Department of Dermatology, Autoimmune Bullous Diseases Research Center, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Faculty of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Department of Biostatistics & Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Hamadan University of Medical Science, Hamadan, Iran Research Center for Immunodeficiencies, Children's Medical Center, Pediatrics Center of Excellence, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Molecular Immunology Research Center, Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol. 2013 Mar;27(3):387-90. doi: 10.1111/j.1468-3083.2011.04319.x. Epub 2011 Nov 2.
The place of cell-mediated immunity and cytokines in the immunopathogenesis of pemphigus vulgaris (PV) has not been fully established.
To assess the serum levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines, Interleukine-6 (IL-6) and Interleukine-8 (IL-8), in PV patients before and after therapy, to evaluate the influence of therapy on the serum cytokine levels.
Sixty-six newly diagnosed PV patients enrolled into the study. The serum levels of IL-8 and IL-6 were measured in 66 and 64 patients, respectively. According to the extent of skin and mucosal involvement, the patients were divided into two groups namely mild and severe. The serum levels of cytokines were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method before and after 4 weeks of prednisolone plus azathioprine therapy.
In 64 patients studied for the serum level of IL-6, the median IL-6 level was significantly decreased from 1.6 to 0.9 pg/mL by therapy (P-value = 0.001). Segregating the patients according to the severity of the disease, the serum level of IL-6 did not differ significantly by therapy in patients with a mild disease. However, in patients with a severe disease the median serum level of IL-6 decreased significantly from 1.8 to 0.9 pg/mL after therapy (P-value = 0.001). No significant changes were found in the IL-8 level by treatment.
The significant decrease in the IL-6 level after therapy suggests that blocking of IL-6 could have therapeutic benefits for the treatment of PV, particularly in severe forms.
细胞介导的免疫和细胞因子在寻常型天疱疮（PV）的免疫发病机制中的作用尚未完全确定。
评估寻常型天疱疮患者治疗前后促炎细胞因子白细胞介素-6（IL-6）和白细胞介素-8（IL-8）的血清水平，评估治疗对血清细胞因子水平的影响。
纳入 66 例新诊断的寻常型天疱疮患者。分别检测了 66 例和 64 例患者的血清 IL-8 和 IL-6 水平。根据皮肤和黏膜受累的程度，将患者分为轻度和重度两组。采用酶联免疫吸附试验（ELISA）法检测细胞因子的血清水平，在泼尼松龙加硫唑嘌呤治疗前和治疗后 4 周分别进行检测。
在研究血清 IL-6 水平的 64 例患者中，治疗后 IL-6 中位数从 1.6 降至 0.9 pg/mL（P 值=0.001）。根据疾病严重程度对患者进行分组，轻度疾病患者的治疗后血清 IL-6 水平差异无统计学意义。然而，在重度疾病患者中，治疗后 IL-6 中位数血清水平从 1.8 降至 0.9 pg/mL（P 值=0.001）。治疗前后 IL-8 水平无显著变化。
治疗后 IL-6 水平显著下降表明阻断 IL-6 可能对寻常型天疱疮的治疗具有治疗益处，尤其是对重度疾病。
