PROFILE OF CYTOKINE MESSENGER-RNA EXPRESSION IN SPONTANEOUS AND UV-INDUCED SKIN-LESIONS FROM ACTINIC PRURIGO PATIENTS

Background - Actinic prurigo (AP) appears to be an immune-mediated dis ease triggered by exposure to ultraviolet light (UV). Objective - To a ssess the profile of cytokine production in skin lesions from AP patie nts. Methods - The cytokine production (IL-1 beta, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, I L-10, IL-13, TNF-alpha, IFN-tau, and TGF-beta) in skin biopsies from 1 2 AP lesions was determined by a semiquantitative coupled reverse tran scription-polymerase chain reaction. Results - We found expression of TGF-beta and IL-13 genes in most AP skin lesions; IL-1 beta, IL-6, TNF -alpha, IFN-tau, and IL-10 were detected in some of these specimens. H owever, the levels of expression of all cytokines studied were not sig nificantly different in AP skin lesions compared to nonlesional skin. Conclusions - TGF-beta and IL-13 might have a key role in both the inf lammatory phenomenon and absence of significant expression of most cyt okines in AP skin. The cytokine production in AP skin resembles that o bserved in rheumatoid synovium, a paucity in cytokine expression despi te the presence of infiltrating activated mononuclear cells.