Apoptosis Resistance in Peripheral Blood Lymphocytes of Alopecia Areata Patients
September 2004
in “
Journal of Autoimmunity
”
TLDR Alopecia areata patients have more activated T cells in their blood, which may help in developing treatments.
The study investigated apoptosis resistance in peripheral blood lymphocytes of patients with alopecia areata (AA), a hair loss disease with autoimmune characteristics. It involved 31 healthy volunteers and patients diagnosed with AA. The research found that patients with progressive AA had an increased percentage of activated T cells in their peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC), compared to those with stable or regressive AA. This increase in activated T cells was linked to a systemic immune response rather than localized skin events. The study highlighted the potential role of CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells (Treg) and the expression of activation markers and cytokines in the progression of AA. The findings suggested that targeting these immune mechanisms could be relevant for developing therapeutic strategies for AA.