Junghans V, Gutgesell C, Jung T, Neumann C
Department of Dermatology, Göttingen University, Germany.
J Invest Dermatol. 1998 Dec;111(6):1184-8. doi: 10.1046/j.1523-1747.1998.00409.x.
Epidermal cytokines such as interleukin (IL)-1beta, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and IL-12 have been described to play a crucial role in the induction and elicitation phase of allergic contact dermatitis upon exposure to haptens. In this study we asked whether these cytokines may also play a role in the epidermis of patients with atopic dermatitis after the application of house dust mite antigens (HDM) to their skin. Epidermal samples were collected by scraping healthy appearing skin of atopic patients and healthy individuals 8 h after the application of an extract of HDM. Sodium lauryl sulfate and saline served as controls. Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction was performed for IL-1beta, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, IL-12 p35, and IL-12 p40. Exposure to HDM led to a significant upregulation of mRNA of these cytokines in atopic patients only. Whereas IL-1beta and tumor necrosis factor-alpha also showed an upregulation in part of these patients after exposure to the irritant sodium lauryl sulfate, IL-12 p40 mRNA was exclusively enhanced by the application of the allergen. In contrast to IL-12 p40, IL-12 p35 mRNA was not detectable in significant amounts. Interestingly, also in untreated, normal appearing skin of atopic individuals (n = 16), the levels of these cytokines were higher than in normal individuals (n = 8), possibly explaining the increased skin irritability of atopic individuals. Finally, comparing epidermal cytokines in the skin of patients who developed a positive allergen patch test to those who stayed negative, suggests that only expression of IL-1beta mRNA may be a predictive marker for the development of a positive patch test reaction to HDM.
表皮细胞因子如白细胞介素（IL）-1β、肿瘤坏死因子-α和IL-12已被描述在接触半抗原后过敏性接触性皮炎的诱导和激发阶段发挥关键作用。在本研究中，我们探讨了这些细胞因子在特应性皮炎患者皮肤应用屋尘螨抗原（HDM）后是否也在表皮中发挥作用。在应用HDM提取物8小时后，通过刮取特应性患者和健康个体外观正常的皮肤收集表皮样本。以十二烷基硫酸钠和生理盐水作为对照。对IL-1β、肿瘤坏死因子-α、IL-12 p35和IL-12 p40进行逆转录聚合酶链反应。仅在特应性患者中，接触HDM导致这些细胞因子的mRNA显著上调。虽然在部分这些患者接触刺激性十二烷基硫酸钠后IL-1β和肿瘤坏死因子-α也显示上调，但IL-12 p40 mRNA仅在应用变应原后增强。与IL-12 p40不同，未检测到大量的IL-12 p35 mRNA。有趣的是，在特应性个体未经治疗、外观正常的皮肤（n = 16）中，这些细胞因子的水平也高于正常个体（n = 8），这可能解释了特应性个体皮肤易激性增加的原因。最后，比较变应原斑贴试验呈阳性的患者与呈阴性的患者皮肤中的表皮细胞因子，表明只有IL-1β mRNA的表达可能是对HDM斑贴试验阳性反应发生的预测标志物。
