Increased Expression of Serum Monocyte Chemoattractant Protein-1, Chemokine (C-C motif) Ligand 3, and Interleukins in Patients With Vitiligo

Abstract

Objective: Vitiligo is a chronic, acquired depigmentation of the skin, which can be divided into active and stable vitiligo. The stable and active stages are not immutable and often alternate. Identification of internal markers would help to diagnose the active stage of vitiligo, and the purpose of this study was to find potential active markers in the progression of vitiligo. Methods: We compared 30 healthy controls to 60 patients with vitiligo (30 with active disease and 30 with stable disease) regarding the expression of serum monocyte chemoattractant protein (MCP)-1, chemokine (C-C motif) ligand (CCL) 3, CCL5, CCL21, interleukin (IL)-6, and IL-17. Specimens were collected from May 2017 to December 2018. Serological detection was carried out by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The difference between groups was compared by Kruskal-Wallis H test and Mann-Whitney U test. Results: We found that the serum levels of MCP-1, CCL3, IL-6, and IL-17 were significantly higher in patients with vitiligo than in healthy controls (P < 0.01 ) and that IL-17 was higher in patients with active vitiligo than in those with stable vitiligo (P < 0.01). After 3months of treatment, the serum IL-17 level of patients with active vitiligo was not significantly different from that before treatment (P = 0.526); after 6months of treatment, however, the serum IL-17 level had significantly decreased (P < 0.01). Conclusion: These findings suggest that the serum IL-17 level can be used as a marker of vitiligo disease activity giving it certain guiding significance for clinical treatment.