Reduction of Serum Interleukin‐5 Levels Reflect Clinical Improvement in Patients with Atopic Dermatitis

Abstract

Cytokines, in particular IL-4 and IL-5, regulate IgE synthesis and eosinophil activation in atopic dermatitis (AD). To elucidate whether the serum levels of IL-4 and IL-5 are related to the serum IgE level, eosinophilia, or clinical severity of the disease, 25 cases with AD were studied. Blood samples were isolated from two groups of donors: 1) patients with AD (n = 25); 2) non-allergic individuals (NA, n = 20) with serum IgE levels below 100 IU/ml and with blood eosinophil counts below 250/microliter. Each parameter was evaluated at least twice in AD patients at the beginning of the study and after 4, 8 or 12 weeks of treatment. IL-4 was hardly detected in AD and NA, but IL-5 was increased (> 10 pg/ml) in most cases (22/25) of AD group with 513.6 pg/ml as the mean. AD with normal serum IgE levels exhibited increased levels of IL-5, whereas AD with high serum IgE levels did not necessarily have elevated IL-5 levels. The IL-5 level tended to change in parallel with the clinical severity in each AD case, although the level itself was not correlated with the clinical severity per se. A significant decrease of IL-5 was observed in AD when the clinical severity decreased. Eosinophils also decreased along with the improvement of AD, whereas the serum level of IgE did not change during the observation period. Our results suggest that IL-5 is involved in the regulation of clinical courses of AD and that its kinetics at the serum level reflects the clinical activity of AD.

Therapeutic Effects of Gyokuheifusan on NC/Nga Mouse Model of Allergic Dermatitis

“…Therefore, IL-5 plays an important pathogenic role in AD. 26,27) Consistent with these observations, the level of IL-5 was increased in the mite antigen-treated group. However, GHS treatment did not inhibit this response.…”

Tacrolimus decreases the expression of eotaxin, CCR3, RANTES and interleukin-5 in atopic dermatitis.

“…Serum and tissue IL‐5 decreased in accordance with the improvement of the severity of AD, and tissue IL‐5 levels correlated with AD severity in this study ( P < 0·05). Kondo et al 34 . reported a significant decrease in serum IL‐5 in AD patients when clinical severity decreased.…”

Contrasting pathogenesis of atopic dermatitis and psoriasis—Part II: Immune cell subsets and therapeutic concepts

“…72,82,83 Levels of the T H 2 cell cytokine IL-5, which promotes survival and mobilization of eosinophils, are increased in the sera of patients with AD and correlate with disease activity. 84 Although eosinophils might have important roles in AD pathogenesis, their exact mechanisms are not clear. Many cytokines assist in recruiting eosinophils to sites of inflammation (Fig 1), including the T H 2 cell cytokines IL-4, IL-5, and IL-13; the chemokines RANTES/CCL5 and eotaxins (eotaxin-1/CCL11, eotaxin-2/CCL24, and eotaxin-3/CCL26); and adhesion molecules, such as the integrin b-subunit.…”