Correlation Between Serum Granulysin Level and Clinical Activity in Patients with Alopecia Areata Before and After Tofacitinib Therapy

August 2020 in “ Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology ”

Muazzez Çiğdem Oba, Özge Aşkın, Özlem Balcı Ekmekçi, Server Serdaroğlu

alopecia areata serum granulysin Severity of Alopecia Tool SALT score tofacitinib alopecia totalis alopecia universalis patchy alopecia areata immunological activity follicle attack AA granulysin SALT Xeljanz

From the encyclopedia

Alopecia Areata →

autoimmune disorder causing patchy hair loss

Tofacitinib →

a JAK inhibitor for alopecia areata and other autoimmune conditions

Studysummary This study found that in patients with alopecia areata, serum granulysin levels decreased significantly after treatment with tofacitinib and correlated with reduced disease severity, suggesting serum granulysin as an indicator of immunological activity and response to therapy. Our plain-language summary of this paper — not a Tressless recommendation.

The study investigated the relationship between serum granulysin levels and the severity of alopecia areata (AA) in 38 patients, using the Severity of Alopecia Tool (SALT) score before and after 6 months of tofacitinib therapy. A moderate correlation was found between SALT scores and serum granulysin levels at baseline, with higher levels in patients with alopecia totalis/universalis compared to those with patchy AA. Post-treatment, a significant decrease in serum granulysin levels was observed, which correlated with a reduction in SALT scores. The findings suggest that serum granulysin could serve as an indicator of immunological activity in AA and that tofacitinib may inhibit granulysin's role in follicle attack. The study implies that monitoring serum granulysin levels could help gauge the immunological response to therapy in AA patients.

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Research cited in this study

10 / 10 results

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