Soluble adhesion molecules in sera of patients with leprosy: levels of soluble intercellular adhesion molecule‐1 (sICAM‐1) rapidly decrease during multi‐drug therapy

The clinicopathological spectrum of leprosy is associated with an altered immunological reaction. The expression of adhesion molecules on endothelial cells directs the cellular traffic to sites of local skin and nerve inflammation. Soluble forms of adhesion molecules, which are released upon cytokine activation, can be detected in the circulation and may reflect ongoing tissue inflammation. We determined the serum levels of sICAM‐1, sE‐selectin and sL‐selectin in 74 patients with leprosy (tuberculoid form, n  = 23; lepromatous form, n  = 36; acute leprous reaction, n  = 16) and 15 healthy age‐ and sex‐matched control donors. Patients with lepromatous leprosy had significantly higher levels of sICAM‐1 (564 ± 174 versus 450 ± 92 versus 334 ± 57 ng/ml) and E‐selectin (90 ± 31 versus 74 ± 29 versus 50 ± 10 ng/ml) than patients with tuberculoid leprosy and normal donors ( P <0.01). No differences between groups were detected for L‐selectin. Patients with leprous reactions had similar high levels to lepromatous patients. Twenty lepromatous patients were re‐examined after 4 weeks of therapy. A significant decrease in sICAM‐1 serum levels was observed after 1 month of anti‐mycobacterial treatment, which was accompanied by a reduction of mycobacteria in skin biopsies ( P <0.01). Patients with leprous reactions ( n  = 13) also demonstrated a drop in sICAM‐1 after anti‐inflammatory therapy. sE‐selectin and sL‐selectin serum values decreased only in lepromatous patients after therapy. It can be concluded that soluble adhesion molecules like sICAM‐1 and sE‐selectin are promising activity markers in patients with leprosy, which may be useful for treatment monitoring.