Byoong Yong Choi

Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D3 and BAFF Levels Are Associated with Disease Activity in Primary Sjogren’s Syndrome

The study investigated the association between disease activity and serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (25(OH)-D3), B cell activation of the tumor necrosis factor family (BAFF), or β 2 microglobulin in patients with primary Sjogrens syndrome (SS). Sixty-nine primary SS patients and 22 sicca control patients were included in the study. Disease activity was measured with EULAR Sjogrens syndrome disease activity index (ESSDAI). Serum levels of 25(OH)-D3 and β 2 microglobulin were measured by radioimmunoassay and BAFF was measured by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Serum levels of 25(OH)-D3 were significantly lower in SS patients compared to the sicca controls (p = 0.036). Serum levels of BAFF tended to be higher (p = 0.225) and those of β 2 microglobulin were significantly higher in patients with SS than in sicca controls (p = 0.023). In univariate regression analyses, ESSDAI was significantly associated with serum levels of 25(OH)-D3, BAFF, and β 2 microglobulin. After stepwise backward multivariate linear regression analyses including age and acute phase reactants, ESSDAI was associated with 25(OH)-D3 (β = −0.042, p = 0.015) and BAFF (β = 0.001, p = 0.015) in SS patients. In SS patients, ESSDAI is negatively associated with serum levels of 25(OH)-D3 and positively associated with BAFF.

Chronic Periodontitis Is Associated With Spinal Dysmobility in Patients With Ankylosing Spondylitis

BACKGROUND Although microbes have been suggested to play a role in the pathogenesis of ankylosing spondylitis (AS), several studies present contradictory results regarding the association between AS and chronic periodontitis (CP). METHODS Clinical, laboratory, and medication data were collected from 84 patients with AS and 84 age- and sex-matched controls. Periodontal measurements, including probing depths (PDs), clinical attachment loss (AL), serum anti-Porphyromonas gingivalis titers, and the detection of P. gingivalis DNA in gingival crevicular fluid, were recorded. All participants with periodontitis with PD ≥4 to <7 mm received scaling and root planing and were re-evaluated at 12 weeks; those still exhibiting periodontitis with PD of ≥4 to <7 mm at 12 weeks were followed at 24 weeks. RESULTS The prevalence of moderate-to-severe CP was not different between patients with AS and controls (70.2% versus 66.6%). The P. gingivalis detection rate was not different between patients with AS and controls or between patients with AS receiving and not receiving anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α agents. However, CP was positively associated with impaired spinal mobility of patients with AS in multivariate analyses. After periodontal treatment, PD and AL levels were improved in both groups, but the change was significantly greater in patients with AS than in controls. Patients with AS receiving anti-TNF-α agents exhibited a greater improvement in PD and AL than those who did not. CONCLUSIONS Although AS was not associated with the presence of CP, CP was associated positively with the severity of spinal dysmobility in Korean patients with AS. These results suggest that periodontitis can have a negative effect on axial movement in AS.

CXCL10/CXCR3 axis is associated with disease activity and the development of mucocutaneous lesions in patients with Behçet’s disease

The objective of this study was to investigate CXC chemokines and its receptor in patients with Behcet’s disease (BD) and their associations with disease activity. Blood samples were collected from 109 BD patients and 36 age- and sex-matched healthy controls (HCs). Twenty-two follow-up blood samples were collected in BD patients. Serum CXC chemokines (CXCL1, CXCL8, CXCL9, CXCL10, CXCL12, CXCL13 and CXCL16) and cell surface marker expression (CD3, CD4 and CXCR3) in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were assayed. Clinical features including disease activity were evaluated at the time of blood collection. CXCR3 expression in skin and intestinal lesions from BD patients and HCs was assessed via immunohistochemistry. Serum CXCL10 levels were correlated with disease activity in terms of Behçet’s Disease Current Activity Form (BDCAF) (p < 0.001). In follow-up BD patients, changes in serum CXCL10 levels tended to be correlated with those of BDCAF. The percentage of CXCR3 expression in CD3-positive cells in PBMCs was inversely correlated with serum CXCL10 levels in BD patients (p = 0.022). By immunohistochemistry, the number of CXCR3-positive mononuclear cells was higher in skin and intestinal lesions of BD patients than in those of HCs. These results suggest that the CXCL10/CXCR3 axis may contribute to the pathogenesis of BD.