Dina A. M. AL-FAIDHI, Rojan G. M. AL-ALLAF
Turkish Journal of Immunology - 2026;14(2):120-128
Objective: Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease that can mimic several common dermatoses, highlighting the need for objective diagnostic biomarkers. This study aimed to evaluate the diagnostic utility of serum anti-ADAMTSL5 and anti-K17 autoantibodies in psoriasis and to assess their associations with systemic inflammation. Materials and Methods: In this case-control study, complete blood count (CBC) parameters were assessed in patients with psoriasis and healthy controls using an automated hematology analyzer, and serum anti-ADAMTSL5 and anti-K17 antibody levels were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Diagnostic accuracy and associations between variables were assessed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and univariable linear regression analyses. Results: The study enrolled 120 participants, including 80 patients with psoriasis and 40 healthy controls. Total leukocyte and absolute neutrophil counts were significantly higher in patients with psoriasis than in healthy controls (p<0.001). Serum levels of anti-ADAMTSL5 (2.18 +/- 0.64 ng/mL vs. 0.06 +/- 0.04 ng/mL) and anti-K17 (13.74 +/- 2.78 ng/L vs. 6.28 +/- 0.83 ng/L) were significantly higher in patients with psoriasis (p=0.000). Univariable regression analyses showed that both autoantibodies were significantly associated with the systemic neutrophilic burden. Moreover, both biomarkers demonstrated high diagnostic performance on ROC analysis, with an area under the curve (AUC) of 1.000 for anti-ADAMTSL5 and 0.998 for anti-K17. Conclusion: Serum anti-ADAMTSL5 and anti-K17 antibodies demonstrated promising diagnostic potential for distinguishing patients with psoriasis from healthy controls in the present study. Given their strong associations with neutrophilic leukocytosis, these findings suggest a potential association between cutaneous autoimmunity and systemic inflammation.
