Serum galectin-3 levels in patients with psoriasis.

INTRODUCTION Galectin-3 is a β-galactoside-binding lectin associated with cellular proliferation, inflammation and angiogenesis, which are the major characteristics of psoriatic skin. OBJECTIVES To investigate serum galectin-3 levels in psoriasis patients compared with healthy controls and to study its relationship with disease characteristics. METHODS Seventy-eight patients diagnosed with psoriasis and 78 age- and sex-matched healthy volunteers were included in the study. Serum galectin-3, IL-17, IL-6 and TNF-α levels were measured using Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). RESULTS Serum Galectin-3, IL-17, IL-6 and TNF-α levels were significantly higher in psoriasis patients compared with control group (P  10 ng/mL increased the risk of psoriasis by 14.5 times (95% CI: 6.6-32.3, P  10 ng/mL predicted psoriasis with 83.3% sensitivity and 74.3% specificity. No statistically significant association was observed between serum galectin-3 concentrations and disease characteristics including disease severity, presence of psoriatic arthritis, nail involvement and psoriatic comorbidity. No statistically significant correlation was observed between serum galectin-3 level and serum IL-17, IL-6 and TNF-α levels (all three P values > .05). CONCLUSIONS Elevated serum galectin-3 levels in psoriasis patients may indicate a possible role of galectin-3 in pathogenesis of psoriasis.