Increased Plasma Levels of S100A8, S100A9, and S100A12 in Chronic Spontaneous Urticaria.

BACKGROUND: Chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) is a skin disorder with an important immunologic profile. S100A8, S100A9, and S100A12 are the members of S100 family that have been reported to play important role in autoimmune diseases, but the characteristics of these three S100 members have not been defined in CSU. AIMS: This study was performed to investigate the levels of these three S100s in patients with CSU and to study whether they were associated with the severity and clinical characteristics of CSU. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The levels of plasma S100A8, S100A9, and S100A12 were measured in 51 CSU patients and 20 healthy controls using enzyme linked immunosorbent assay kits. The values in the patient group and that of the healthy controls were statistically compared. The relationships between the different markers were evaluated by correlation analysis. RESULTS: The plasma levels of S100A8, S100A9, and S100A12 were significantly higher in CSU patients than those in controls. Interestingly, the level of S100A12 was significantly correlated with S100A8 and S100A9 in CSU patients (P < 0.05 and P < 0.001, respectively). In addition, S100A8, S100A9, and S100A12 were all significantly inversely correlated with blood basophil percentage. CONCLUSIONS: Plasma S100A8, S100A9, and S100A12 levels were elevated in CSU patients. They might be useful biomarkers of CSU, with the potential role in the pathogenesis of CSU.

Repression of M-phase phosphoprotein 8 inhibits melanoma growth and metastasis in vitro and in vivo.

Metastatic melanoma accounts for the majority of skin cancer deaths due to its aggressiveness and high resistance to current therapies. M-phase phosphoprotein 8 (MPP8) has been shown to bind to methylated H3K9 and promote tumor cell motility and invasion. The current study aimed to investigate the role of MPP8 in melanoma growth and metastasis. Our results showed that MMP8 was up-regulated in the metastatic melanoma specimens. Knockdown of MPP8 inhibited melanoma cell growth both in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, down-regulation of MPP8 induced S-phase cell cycle arrest as well as altered expression of cell cycle-related proteins in melanoma cells. In addition, repression of MPP8 inhibited the migration and invasion of melanoma cells both in vitro and in vivo. Taken together, these data suggest that MPP8 knockdown could inhibit the growth and metastasis of melanoma cells and provide novel therapeutic target for melanoma treatment.