Allergy.  1994 Jun;14(2):227-234.

Eosinophil Cationic Protein in atopic dermatitis

• Cha MK
• Kim CW
• Kim TY
• Kang H
• Park CJ

Abstract

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the skin, frequently associated with elevation of serum IgE levels and peripheral eosinophil count, and other immunoligical abnormalities. We investigated to test whether there is relationship among the serum levels of eosinophil cationic protein (ECP), IgE, clinical disease activity, and eosinophil number in AD patients. When we measured the levels of ECP in sera of 130 AD patients and compared to those of non-atopic controls, the levels of serum ECP well correlated with the severity of AD. The patients with severe and moderate AD had significantly higher ECP concentration than that of normal controls(P< 0.01). A positive correlation was observed between the number of peripheral blood eosinophils and serum ECP levels in AD(gamma0.71, P<0001), but we could not find any correlation between ECP and serum IgE levels. Measurement of ECP may represent a noninvasive tool to assess the severity of AD as well as the role of eosinophils in the pathogenesis of AD.

MeSH Terms

Dermatitis, Atopic*
Eosinophil Cationic Protein*
Eosinophils*
Humans
Immunoglobulin E
Skin
Eosinophil Cationic Protein
Immunoglobulin E