Elafin level in lichen planus

Lichen planus (LP) is a chronic, inflammatory, autoimmune disease that affects the skin, oral mucosa and genital mucosa. Elafin is an epithelial host-defense protein that is absent in normal skin but highly expressed in inflamed skin keratinocytes. Overexpression of Elafin has been reported in various infective, inflammatory skin disorders, such as cellulitis, psoriasis, Behçet’s syndrome, and graft versus host disease. The aim of this case- control study is to map the level of Elafin in LP in order to investigate its role in the pathogenesis of LP. This study included 30 LP patients and 30 healthy controls. 10 cc blood samples were withdrawn from study participants to evaluate the serum level of Elafin using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) technique. Serum Elafin level was significantly higher in LP patients as compared to healthy controls; the mean values were (32.56 vs. 5.60) in LP cases and healthy controls respectively with a statistically significant p-value < 0.001. We conclude that Elafin could be part of the inflammatory autoimmune process in LP.