Summary
The concentrations of arachidonic acid and its lipoxygenase metabolites were measured in exudates from lesional psoriatic skin during treatment with 0.25% dithranol (anthralin) applied topically for 10 days. Dithranol caused a reduction in the concentration of arachidonic acid at 10 days (167±42 and 358±55 ng ml-1 treated and control sites respectively, p<0.05) concurrent with clinical improvement of the lesions. Neither 12-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid nor leukotriene B4 concentrations were significantly affected. These results do not support the view that lipoxygenase products are of major importance in the pathogenesis of psoriasis.
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Barr, R.M., Wong, E., Cunningham, F.M. et al. Effect of dithranol treatment on arachidonic acid and its lipoxygenase products in psoriasis. Arch Dermatol Res 280, 474–476 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00427659
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00427659