Differential Proteomics of Lesional vs. Non-Lesional Biopsies Revealed Non-Immune Mechanisms of Alopecia Areata

The study on alopecia areata (AA) involving 10 patients used quantitative proteomics to compare lesional and non-lesional biopsies, revealing significant differences in protein expression. Specifically, 104 proteins were down-regulated, 4 were absent, 3 were up-regulated, and 11 were newly present in lesional biopsies. Key proteins such as α-tubulin, vimentin, HSP70, HSP90, annexin A2, and α-enolase showed decreased levels, confirmed by Western blotting. Network analysis indicated that down-regulated proteins were involved in tissue development, cell differentiation, and response to wounding, while up-regulated proteins were linked to metabolic processes and cellular transport. Notably, only 5 proteins were associated with immune regulation, suggesting non-immune mechanisms play a significant role in AA. This proteome dataset highlighted novel pathways potentially leading to new therapeutic targets for AA.