ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: Alopecia areata (AA) is characterized by non-scarring, patchy hair loss caused by autoimmune reactions to anagen hair follicles. The pathogenesis of AA may be affected by the diet. However, the dietary habits of patients with AA have not been precisely examined. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the dietary habits of patients with AA in comparison to those of healthy controls. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We evaluated the dietary habits of 70 adult Japanese patients with AA using a brief-type self-administered diet history questionnaire and compared them to the habits of age- and sex-matched healthy controls. RESULTS: Japanese patients with AA had a higher body mass index (BMI) and higher intakes of vitamin C and fruit than the controls. Logistic regression analysis showed that AA was associated with BMI. Retinol intake was positively correlated with severity of alopecia tool (SALT) score, and linear regression analysis revealed that retinol intake was a predictor of SALT score. Retinol intake among patients with moderate to severe AA (ie, a SALT score >25) was higher than that in patients with mild AA (a SALT score ≤25). The mean age of AA patients with atopic dermatitis (AD) was lower than that of AA patients without AD; however, there were no differences in nutrient or food intake between these two groups. Logistic regression analysis showed that the comorbidity AD was negatively associated with age. CONCLUSION: AA was associated with a high BMI, and high retinol intake was a predictor of SALT score. Further studies should be conducted to clarify whether dietary intervention to reduce BMI or limit retinol intake can alter the development or severity of AA.
ABSTRACT
Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory skin disease, characterized by pruritic and eczematous skin lesions and dermatitis that worsens under stressful conditions. However, the relation of these symptoms to an individual's stress sensitivity is not well understood. On the other hand, expression of the translocator protein (18 kDa) (TSPO), formerly known as the peripheral-type benzodiazepine receptor, has been used as a biological marker of trait anxiety and stress sensitivity. The present study was designed to address this issue by examining TSPO in patients with AD. Fifty-two patients with AD (30 male and 22 female) and 163 healthy volunteers (89 male and 74 female) participated in this study. State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) scores were significantly higher in patients with AD, especially male patients, than in healthy subjects. The expression of platelet TSPO, as determined with a binding assay with [(3)H] PK11195, was also significantly higher in patients with AD, indicating that AD is a stress-responsive disease. In genomic analysis using lymphocytes, a single-nucleotide polymorphism of the human TSPO gene at exon 4 (485G>A), which is presumably associated with an individual's stress sensitivity, showed significantly lower frequencies of G/G and higher frequencies of G/A in patients with AD than in healthy subjects. The severity of AD, as determined with the Scoring of Atopic Dermatitis index, was correlated with TSPO expression in male patients with the G/A phenotype. In conclusion, the present study provides new evidence that variation in the TSPO gene affects susceptibility to AD.
