Serum TWEAK in acne vulgaris: An unknown soldier
Abd El‐Aziz Ibrahim El‐Taweel MD  Rehab Mohammed Salem MD  Amira Mohamed Noureldin Abdelrahman MD  Basma Abd El‐Kafy Mohamed MBBCH
First published: 28 May 2019 https://doi.org/10.1111/jocd.13011
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Abstract
Background
TWEAK is an inflammatory cytokine which is involved in the development of many inflammatory disorders.

Aims
This study aimed to evaluate serum levels of TWEAK in patients with acne vulgaris.

Subjects and Methods
This case‐controlled study included 100 acne vulgaris patients divided into two groups. Group 1 included 25 patients with moderate acne and 25 patients with severe acne. Group 2 consisted of 50 acne‐free control subjects. Acne was graded by the Global Acne Grading System (GAGS). Serum TWEAK was measured by ELISA kits.

Results
Acne patients had significant elevation in TWEAK serum levels when compared to the control subjects (P < 0.001). TWEAK serum levels did not show significant difference regarding disease grade, postacne scar, and hyperpigmentation (P value = 0.43, 0.37, 0.80, 0.67, respectively). TWEAK levels were not affected by any of the studied variables except for the significant negative correlation between its levels and the disease duration in severe acne group only (r = −0.42, P = 0.03).

Conclusion
TWEAK may be involved in acne vulgaris development, but more studies are needed to clarify its role.