RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 IFNα, a potential biomarker for stress vitiligo risk JF bioRxiv FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory SP 151571 DO 10.1101/151571 A1 Huali Wu A1 Ting Wang A1 Minxuan Cai A1 Mengsi Fu A1 Fengfeng Ping A1 Ling He A1 Xiaohong An A1 Zhixiang Shi A1 Zhenjiang Xia A1 Jing Shang YR 2017 UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2017/06/18/151571.abstract AB Neural hypothesis has become an important aspect of vitiligo, yet without corresponding diagnostic indicators. We preliminarily found 32 cases of vitiligo patients with certain aggregation of mental factors. In peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of these patients, transcriptome analyses revealed that the circulation expression of a type I interferon (IFN-I)-dependent genes was induced. Also, serum IFNα was elevated in vitiligo patients with depression. Therefore, our hypothesis is whether IFNα levels predict the occurrence of psychiatric vitiligo. Through the establishment of stress-induced depigmentation model, serum IFNα also showed increase. Intracerebroventricular and subcutaneous IFNα injection can both elicit not only depressive behavior but also vitiligo-like characteristics. Mechanistically, central IFNα induces the release of dorsal root ganglion (DRG) substance P (SP) to inhibit melanogenesis. Peripheral IFNα disturbs cutaneous-neuro-endocrine microenvironment. Type I IFN (IFNα) pathway-related genes in stress vitiligo were significantly discriminating from non-stress vitiligo, while that of type II IFN pathway was not.