Immune Signatures of Psoriasis: Comparison of Genetic Expression Profiles in Psoriasis Patients After Therapy with Biologic Agents

In 2015, a study was conducted by Dario Kivelevitch and his team at the Baylor Institute for Immunology Research to examine the genetic expression profiles in psoriasis patients after therapy with biologic agents. The study involved 35 patients with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis who were initiating either adalimumab or ustekinumab treatment, and 32 healthy subjects. The results showed a 63.6% mean improvement in the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) from a baseline of 15.4 to 5.6 at week 16. The study identified 482 genes that were differentially expressed between untreated patients and healthy subjects, with up-regulation of modules related to inflammation, interferon response, and neutrophils in psoriasis. The study concluded that blood microarray biomarkers may have the potential to be a valuable assessment tool to predict treatment response in individual patients.