J Mol Pathophysiol 2013; 2:27-31 ISSN:2146-832X www.pathophysiol.com 27 Journal of Molecular Pathophysiology available at www.pathophysiol.com Original Research Oxidative stress in acne vulgaris: an important therapeutic target Ahmed Salih Sahib 1 , Haidar Hamid Al-Anbari 2 , Ahmed R. Abu Raghif 2 1 Department of Pharmacology, Al-Kindy College of Medicine, University of Baghdad, Baghdad, Iraq. 2 Department of Pharmacology, Al-Nahrain College of Medicine, Baghdad, Iraq. Received: August 17, 2012 Accepted: January 27, 2013 Published Online: April 1, 2013 DOI: 10.5455/jmp.20130127102901 Corresponding Author: Ahmed Salih Sahib, Alkindy College of Medicine; University of Baghdad ahmedsalih73@yahoo.com Keywords: Acne vulgaris; Inflammation; Oxidative stress Abstract Objective: There has been an increasing focus on the extent to which oxidative stress is involved in the pathophysiology of acne. The aim of this study is to investigate the existence of oxidative stress and inflammatory marker IL-8 in patients with acne vulgaris, and the role of oxidative stress as a therapeutic target in the treatment of acne vulgaris. Methods: A randomized prospective clinical trial was carried out on 56 patients of both sexes with age range of 14-35 years who attend to outpatient clinic in Al-Hussein Teaching Hospital- Kerbalaa -Iraq over a period from December 2011 to May 2012, all patients examined clinically by dermatologist and classified according to disease severity. Serum levels of glutathione (GSH), malondialdehyde (MDA) and interleukine -8 (IL-8) in the acne patients were measured by using ready- for- use Elisa kits, and compared to that of 28 healthy volunteers. Results: The results of the serum level analysis of MDA for the acne patients (expressed as the mean± standard deviation) was highly significant (P value ≤ 0.001) higher than that of healthy volunteers, while serum level of GSH was highly significant (P value ≤ 0.001) lower in acne patients compared to healthy volunteers; there is a significant difference (P value ≤ 0.05) found in serum levels of IL-8 between the acne patients and the healthy volunteers. Conclusions: The results obtained in this study clearly showed the existence of oxidative stress in patients with acne vulgaris, and that oxidative stress along with inflammation play a critical role in acne pathogenesis; furthermore, oxidative stress in acne patients may represents a potential therapeutic target and interference with antioxidant is a rationale choice. © 2013 GESDAV INTRODUCTION Acne vulgaris is a common human skin disease. It is a disease of the pilosebaceous unit in the skin, characterized by areas of skin with seborrhea, comedones (blackheads and whiteheads) which are the non-inflammatory lesions; papules (pinheads) and pustules (pimples) which are the inflammatory lesions, nodules (large papules) and possibly scarring [1]. Acne is an exclusively human disease and a unique condition of human sebaceous follicles of the face, chest and back that begins in the prepubertal child. Spontaneous regression is common, but in about 5% of cases acne persists beyond the age of 25 and extends into the fourth and fifth decades of life [2]. The earlier the symptoms start, the more severe is the course of the disease. The prevalence of the disease does not reflect any preference for male or female, but usually the course is more severe in males [3]. Acne vulgaris is a distressing skin condition which can carry with it a significant psychological disability. Patients with acne are more likely to experience anger and are at increased risk of depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation [4].