Investigation of serum ghrelin and obestatin levels in patients with acne vulgaris

Acne vulgaris is an important puplic health problem, which leds serious problems both socially and psychologically. Although etiopathogenesis is not known completely, sensitization to androgene hormones, follicular dyskeratinization, increase in sebum, microorganisms and inflammation are prominent factors in pathogenesis of the disease. In this study, the roles of the hormones such as ghrelin and obestatin synthesized by the same gene with ghrelin, which have antiinflammatory and antimicrobial characteristics, in pathogenesis of acne disease, were investigated. According to global acne grading system, sixty three subjects, ( mild =22, moderate= 21, severe=22), who have consistent body mass index with one another and twenty medically healty volunteers were taken to study. The levels of serum ghrelin and obestatin which taken from the blood samples of the participants were measured. In addition to, fasting blood glucose, trigliserid, LDL, VLDL, HDL, total cholesterol, insulin, C-peptid, HbA1c were studied. The values of HOMA-IR were calculated. The average values of ghrelin, des-acyl ghrelin and obestatin of acne group, when compared to control group together with relatively more lower, did not show statistically significance. While the values of acyl-ghrelin are the highest in the severe acne group, the values of des-acyl ghrelin are the highest in mild acne group and the average obestatin values are the highest in moderate acne group. But when the groups compared, these values were not statically significance (p>0.05, p>0.05 and p>0.05). When the groups were compared from the point of other biochemical parameters, there were not seen any important statically difference and significance were not determined between the patient and control groups from the point of HOMA-IR and BMI. Consequently, it is supposed that there is a relation between the levels of acyl ghrelin, des-acyl ghrelin and obestatin which were determined low in the serums of the acne patients and acne. Because of the decrease observed in the levels of these hormones which show antimicrobial characteristic, we foresee that it is impossible to inhibite reproduction of microorganisms which play ethyology of the disease, and to suppress inflammation in acne but we also foresee that reaching physiological concentration, with the replacement of these hormones, will contribute to treatment of acne.