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Microchimerism in alopecia areata
Author(s) -
Terzi Erdinç,
Bulut Bilal,
Türsen Ümit,
Kaya Tamer İrfan,
Türsen Belma,
Erdal Mehmet Emin,
Yilmaz Şenay Görücü
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
international journal of dermatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.677
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 1365-4632
pISSN - 0011-9059
DOI - 10.1111/ijd.12795
Subject(s) - alopecia areata , microchimerism , medicine , alopecia universalis , dermatology , immunology , testis determining factor , fetus , pregnancy , gene , y chromosome , genetics , biology
Background Autoimmunity is the main etiopathogenetic factor in alopecia areata. Microchimerism is the existence of allogeneic DNA in a living creature. There are variable studies investigating the role of microchimerism on the etiopathogenesis of autoimmune diseases. To our knowledge, no report has investigated the relationship between microchimerism and alopecia areata. Objective We aimed to investigate the possible role of microchimerism on alopecia areata. Methods We analyzed SRY gene levels as indicators of fetal microchimerism in our patient group. The patients were 29 women with alopecia areata, over 18 years old, who had visited our clinic between 2010 and 2013. Patients were divided into two groups; group 1 consisted of 14 patients having a son and group 2, 15 patients either nulliparous or having a daughter. Results Seventeen of 29 patients (58.6%) and four of 103 controls (3.9%) showed presence of an SRY gene. The difference between the patient and control groups was statistically significant ( P < 0.001). Conclusion As a result of our study, microchimerism may be associated with the etiopathogenesis of alopecia areata. However, we think there is a need for a larger series of studies to support this hypothesis.