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Etanercept Downregulates the Th17 Pathway and Decreases the IL-17+/IL-10+ Cell Ratio in Patients with Psoriasis Vulgaris

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Abstract

Purpose

To evaluate circulating and lesional CD4+ and CD8+ cells belonging to Th1, Th2, and Th17 patterns as well as IL-10+ cells before and after a 12-week lasting course with etanercept or acitretin in patients with psoriasis.

Methods

15 patients were given etanercept 50 mg twice weekly and 15 patients acitretin 0,4 mg/kg/day, both for 12 weeks. At the baseline and at the end of the treatment, blood and skin samples were taken to investigate IL-4, IL-8, IL-10, IL-17, and IFN-γ-producing CD4+ and CD8+ cells. As controls, 10 healthy controls (HC) and 6 atopic dermatitis (AD) patients were included into the study.

Results

Psoriasis patients showed augmented IL-17- and IL-8-producing CD4+ cells in the blood than HC and AD patients. In the skin lesions, IL-17+ cells were more represented in psoriasis than in AD, while the number of IL-4-producing cells was reduced in psoriasis patients than in AD ones. Etanercept was able to significantly reduce the number of IL-17- and IL-8-producing CD4+ and CD8+ cells both in skin and blood, as well as to augment the proportion of IL-10-producing CD4+ cells in the skin of psoriatic patients, while acitretin was not.

Conclusions

Our results confirmed the role of Th17 cells in the pathogenesis of psoriasis. Etanercept, but not acitretin, was able to downregulate the Th17 pathway and to increase the percentages of IL-10-producing cells in the skin.

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Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medical and Surgical Critical Care, Section of Clinical, Allergo-immunological and Infettivological Dermatology, University of Florence, Florence, Italy

    Emiliano Antiga, Walter Volpi, Cinzia Manuelli, Paolo Fabbri & Marzia Caproni

  2. Department of Clinical Physiopathology, University of Florence, Florence, Italy

    Emiliano Antiga

  3. Center of Research, Transfer and High Education DENOthe, University of Florence, Florence, Italy

    Elisa Cardilicchia, Laura Maggi, Lucia Filì, Cinzia Manuelli & Paola Parronchi

  4. Department of Medical and Surgical Critical Care, Section of Dermatology, University of Florence, Piazza Indipendenza, 11, 50129, Florence, Italy

    Emiliano Antiga

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  1. Emiliano Antiga
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Correspondence to Emiliano Antiga.

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Antiga, E., Volpi, W., Cardilicchia, E. et al. Etanercept Downregulates the Th17 Pathway and Decreases the IL-17+/IL-10+ Cell Ratio in Patients with Psoriasis Vulgaris. J Clin Immunol 32, 1221–1232 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10875-012-9716-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10875-012-9716-x

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