Omega-3 (ω-3) and omega-6 (ω-6) polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are nowadays desirable components of oils with special dietary and functional properties. Their therapeutic and health-promoting effects have already been established in various chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases through various mechanisms, including modifications in cell membrane lipid composition, gene expression, cellular metabolism, and signal transduction. The application of ω-3 and ω-6 PUFAs in most common skin diseases has been examined in numerous studies, but their results and conclusions were mostly opposing and inconclusive. It seems that combined ω-6, gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), and ω-3 long-chain PUFAs supplementation exhibits the highest potential in diminishing inflammatory processes, which could be beneficial for the management of inflammatory skin diseases, such as atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, and acne. Due to significant population and individually-based genetic variations that impact PUFAs metabolism and associated metabolites, gene expression, and subsequent inflammatory responses, at this point, we could not recommend strict dietary and supplementation strategies for disease prevention and treatment that will be appropriate for all. Well-balanced nutrition and additional anti-inflammatory PUFA-based supplementation should be encouraged in a targeted manner for individuals in need to provide better management of skin diseases but, most importantly, to maintain and improve overall skin health.
Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a chronic, recurrent, inflammatory skin disease deriving from the hair follicles. The formation of inflammatory nodules, abscesses, fistulas, and sinus tracts is characterized by a large inflow of key pro-inflammatory mediators, such as IFN-γ, TNF-α, IL-1, IL-17, and IL-12/23. Adalimumab is currently the only Food and Drug Administration (FDA)- and European Medicines Agency (EMA)-approved biologic therapy for moderate to severe HS in adults and adolescents. However, the long-term effectiveness of this TNF-α inhibitor in HS patients has shown to be highly variable. This review aims to review the evidence for emerging therapies that target the main pro-inflammatory cytokines in HS pathogenesis. A review of the literature was conducted, using the PubMed and Google Scholar repositories, as well as Clinicaltrials.gov. Presently, the most promising biologics in phase III trials are anti-IL-17 antibodies, secukinumab, and bimekizumab. Furthermore, an anti-IL-1 biologic, bermekimab, is currently in phase II trials, and shows encouraging results. Overall, the clinical efficacies of all new targeted therapies published up to this point are limited. More studies need to be performed to clarify the precise molecular pathology, and assess the efficacy of biological therapies for HS.
Pemphigus is a rare autoimmune disease characterised by the production of pathogenic autoantibodies in response to different desmosome proteins. The pathophysiological process leads to the development of blisters and erosions on mucosal and/or skin surfaces. The classical clinical variants of pemphigus are pemphigus vulgaris and pemphigus foliaceus. A diagnostic delay is very common in pemphigus, especially among patients with mucosal involvement. However, in recent years we have witnessed considerably fewer patients with extensive mucocutaneous manifestations, since patients with oral lesions are referred to dermatologists to start the treatment much sooner than they had been previously. Among non-classical variants of pemphigus, unusual cases with discrepancies between autoantibody profiles and clinics challenge the “desmoglein compensation theory”. The identification of several other autoantigens that perform a role in the pathogenesis of different variants of pemphigus will progress immunodermatology towards an approach that will determine personalized pemphigus subtypes for each patient. Comorbidities among patients are primarily associated with the prolonged use of corticosteroids and other immunosuppressive agents. The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic raised concerns regarding the immunosuppressive effects of treatment and the risk of a more complicated COVID-19 infection, as well as on the ability to develop an adequate vaccine response.