Case-control study reveals higher interleukin-2 levels in vitiligo patients, suggesting its role in disease pathogenesis.
Background: Vitiligo is a chronic skin disorder characterized by the loss of pigment, resulting in white patches on the skin. This condition occurs due to the destruction or dysfunction of melanocytes, the cells responsible for producing melanin, pigment that gives skin its color. Purpose: To assess and compare the serum levels of interleukin-2 and vitamin D3 between patients with vitiligo and healthy individuals, in order to investigate their potential role in the pathogenesis of vitiligo. Method: Case-control study was conducted on 120 subjects, divided into two groups: the patient group included 60 individuals diagnosed with vitiligo, and the control group consisted of 60 healthy volunteers. Blood samples were collected from all participants after obtaining verbal consent. Serum level of interlukin-2 and vitamin D3 was measured using ELISA (Bet Lab/China). Results: In this study) I found that the mean level of interleukin-2 was significantly higher in vitiligo patient (0.66044±0.039136) compared to healthy controls (0.96919±0.125146) with a statistically significant difference (P- value =0.020) However the two clinical types of vitiligo the clinical types of vitiligo (localized and generalized), no statistically significant difference was observed. The mean level in localized vitiligo was (0.56941±0.032243) and in generalized vitiligo was (0.72113± 0.059873) (P-value =0.057), also This study, according linear scatter plot showed no statistically significant relationship between the duration of vitiligo and the level of IL-2. Vitamin D3 levels no statistically significantly between patients of vitiligo compared to controls, the mean levels (0.85717±0.041315) for patients with vitiligo, while the control (1.01195±0.115793), was (p-value= 0.211). Statistically significant difference was found between localized (075233±0.042477) and generalized (0.92706±0.060467) types of vitiligo (p-value =0.037). Conclusion: The study showed a significant increase in interleukin–2 levels among patients with vitiligo compared to healthy individuals, suggesting a possible role of this cytokine in the immunopathogenesis of the disease. However, IL-2 levels did not significantly differ between localized and generalized types of vitiligo, which may indicate that IL-2 is more related to disease onset rather than its clinical distribution.
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Aljbory et al. (2025) studied this question.
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