A Marker for Evaluation of Oxidative Stress in Patients with Alopecia Areta: Thiol-Disulphide Homeostasis

Abstract

Objective: Alopecia areata (M) is a disorder characterized by non-scarring hair loss, whose etiology involves oxidative stress. We aimed to determine the role of thiol/disulphide levels in AA pathogenesis and to investigate if they can be used as its marker. Materials and Methods: This prospective study included 100 AA patients who presented to dermatology outpatient clinic and 100 healthy controls without any systemic and/or inflammatory dermatological disorder. The control and study groups were compared with respect to native thiol, total thiol, and disulphide levels, and disulphide/native thiol, disulphide/total thiol, and native thiol/total thiol ratios. The relationships between demographic and lesion characteristics, native thiol, total thiol, and disulphide levels, and disulphide/native thiol, disulphide/total thiol, and native thiol/total thiol ratios were studied. Results: The mean age of AA patients was 37.5 years. Fifty-eight (58%) patients were male, and the median body mass index was 24 kg/m(2). Median age was significantly higher in the AA group (p<0.05). The AA group had a significantly lower total and native thiol level, native thiol/total thiol ratio, significantly higher disulphide level, disulphide/native thiol ratio, and disulphide/total thiol ratio (p<0.05 for all comparisons). There was no correlation between the parameters of thiol/disulfide hemostasis and demographic and lesion characteristics (p>0.05). Conclusion: The thiol/disulphide homeostasis shifted towards oxidative stress, and a decrease in thiols and an increase in disulphides were found in the AA patients. This finding may be responsible for diffuse destruction of hair follicle in the pathogenesis of AA.