RÉSUMÉ
Background: Vitiligo is a pigmentation disorder which is associated with increased expression of inflammatory cytokines in skin and blood. Interleukin-17 [IL-17] is a cytokine which exerts strong pro inflammatory activities and although considered a major mediator of tissue inflammation in several models of inflammatory diseases, its role in vitiligo is still under investigation
Aim: The aim of this work was to study the role of IL-17 in the pathogenesis of vitiligo by investigating its serum level and its gene expression in lesional skin in patients with vitiligo and compared with controls
Methods: Thirty patients with vitiligo and fifteen controls were enrolled in the study. Serum IL-17 level was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay [ELISA] and its skin expression was measured by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction [RT-PCR] in both groups. Their correlations with age, gender, disease duration, disease activity, type of vitiligo and family history were assessed
Results: A significant increase was found in levels of both serum IL-17 and skin IL-17 mRNA expression in vitiligo patients compared with controls [P <0.001]. In vitiligo patients, there was a significant positive correlation between serum levels of IL-17 and skin levels of IL-17 mRNA expression [r =0.978, P <0.001], and both of them were significantly higher in active than in stable vitiligo [P <0.001]. There was a significant positive correlation between disease duration and both IL-17 levels in serum [r = 0.413, P= 0.023] and its expression levels in lesional skin [r = 0.370, P- 0.044]
Conclusion: The increased serum levels and skin expression levels of IL-17 in patients with vitiligo may indicate an important role of this cytokine in the immunopathogenesis of vitiligo