Abstract
The frequent coexistence of obesity and metabolic syndrome in patients with alopecia areata may indicate the common pathogenetic pathway in these conditions with an important role of adipokines. The aim of the study was to evaluate the serum level of adiponectin, resistin and leptin in patients with alopecia areata in comparison to healthy controls. The study included 65 patients with alopecia areata and 71 healthy controls. The concentration of adipokines was determined with the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The mean concentrations of adiponectin and resistin were significantly lower in the sera of patients with alopecia areata when compared to healthy controls (7966 pm 4087 vs 9947 pm 5692 ng/ml; p = 0.0312 and 11.04 pm 3.88 vs 14.11 pm 8.69 ng/ml; p = 0.0176, respectively). A negative correlation between the serum level of adiponectin and severity of alopecia tool (SALT) score was observed (r = − 0.26; p < 0.05). The concentration of adiponectin was significantly lower in patients with alopecia universalis than in patients with patchy alopecia areata (4951 pm 2499 vs 8525 pm 4085 ng/ml; p = 0.0135). No significant difference in the serum concentration of leptin was observed between patients with alopecia areata and healthy controls. The negative correlation between the serum level of adiponectin and hair loss severity indicates that adiponectin may be considered a marker of hair loss severity in alopecia areata. Further studies are needed to evaluate the role of resistin in patients with alopecia areata and its decreased level irregardless of severity or activity of the disease.
Highlights
Alopecia areata is an autoimmune form of non-scarring hair loss that may affect any hair-bearing area[11]
The control group consisted of 71 healthy individuals matched for age, sex and body mass index (BMI)
Two patients with alopecia areata and one individual from the control group were diagnosed with metabolic syndrome
Summary
Alopecia areata is an autoimmune form of non-scarring hair loss that may affect any hair-bearing area[11]. Numerous studies indicate that alopecia areata is associated with systemic autoimmune activation implying significantly elevated serum levels of Th1 (IL-1β, IL-2, IL-12, TNF-α, and IFN-γ), Th2 (IL-4, IL-10, IL-13, IL-25, IL-31) and Th17 cytokines (e.g. IL-17A)[14]. In patients with alopecia areata hair loss is limited to pigmented hairs in anagen p hase[16]. An association between alopecia areata and vitiligo is r eported[18]. Melanocytes are a significant component of the hair bulb, which is the site of immune attack in alopecia areata[17]. To date, limited reports concerning the role of adipokines in alopecia areata have been published
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