Baseline Levels of Circulating Inflammatory Biomarkers Stratify Patients with Vitiligo Who Significantly Repigment after Treatment with Ruxolitinib Cream.

Background: Efficacy of ruxolitinib cream, a topical Jak1/Jak2 inhibitor, was demonstrated in a phase 2 trial in patients with vitiligo.

Objective: This study aimed to characterize circulating inflammatory biomarker profiles in patients who demonstrated ≥50% improvement in facial Vitiligo Area Scoring Index scores by week 24 (group 1) and those who did not (group 2).

Design: This was a posthoc analysis of a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, vehicle-controlled, phase 2 study in which screening was conducted between June 7, 2017 and March 21, 2018.

Modeling Skin Inflammation Using Human In Vitro Models.

Skin is made up of an epidermis and, dermis which serve as a barrier against physical and environmental threats. Keratinocytes make up greater than 95% of the epidermis and form different layers based on their level of differentiation. Millions of individuals suffer from skin diseases, which are characterized by significant barrier disruption and inflammation.

Transcriptomic analysis of hidradenitis suppurativa skin suggests roles for multiple inflammatory pathways in disease pathogenesis.

Objective: Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a chronic inflammatory disease with limited treatment options; therefore, the current study investigated the downstream signaling pathways that are differentially expressed in HS subjects and may drive disease pathogenesis.

Methods: The expression of 144 genes was evaluated in the skin of 16 healthy subjects and 34 subjects with mild to severe HS using QuantiGene Plex assay.

Results: One hundred and twenty-nine genes were significantly elevated in lesional HS skin as compared to the skin of healthy controls including pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1α, IL-6, TNF-α), IL-17-associated cytokines (IL-17A, IL-17F, IL-23A), the IL-10 family of cytokines (IL-10, IL-19, IL-20, IL-22, IL-24), and IFN family members (IFNA1, IFNB1, IFNG, IL-12B).