Allergy/Immunology - News & Articles

Neonatal microbial diversity decreases risk of eczema

As reported in Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, increased microbial diversity during the neonatal period decreases the risk of eczema in infants. Fecal samples were obtained from 98 neonates at 1 week of life and assessed for microbial diversity using terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism. Infants with eczema at 12 months of age had less microbial diversity during the neonatal period than infants without eczema.

Is alopecia areata an autoimmune disease?

As reported in the British Journal of Dermatology, two cytokine genes (IL-2RA and TNF/LTA) which have been implicated in autoimmune diseases are associated with severe alopecia areata. The study involved 768 patients with alopecia areata and 658 controls, and 26 cytokine genes were genotyped.

Adipokine and Th17 cytokine interactions in psoriasis

As published in Clinical and Experimental Dermatology, adipokines and Th17 cytokines have a positive correlation, and may be involved in the pathogenesis of psoriasis even though a link between psoriasis as an autoimmune disease and metabolic syndrome has not been established. The study involved 30 patients with psoriasis and 30 healthy controls. In patients with psoriasis, there are positive associations between resistin and TNF-?, and between IL-22 and adiponectin; there is a negative association between retinol-binding protein 4 and IL-6.