Evaluation of interleukin-23 expression in classic kaposi’s sarcoma and AIDS-Associated

Abstract

Kaposi’s sarcoma (KS) is a low-grade vascular tumor that presents most frequently with skin lesions. Multiple factors are related to KS pathogenesis. The interleukin-23 (IL-23) is an immunomodulatory cytokine with pro-carcinogenic role. The aim of this study was to evaluate the detection of IL-23 in cutaneous lesions of patients with KS classic and KS-AIDS. This was a cross-sectional study conducted at the public Hospital in Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil. This study included 13 biopsies of patients which presented KS with histopathological confirmation. For detection of IL-23, the immunohistochemical analysis was made with monoclonal antibody anti-IL-23. The immunostaining for IL-23 in biopsies was positive in 61.5% (8/13) of cases. Of seven lesions classified as patch-stage, three were positive for IL-23 (42.8%); two of three samples classified as plaque-stage were positive for IL-23 (66.7%); all the nodular-stage lesions were positive for IL-23. The positivity found in KS-AIDS lesions was 66.7% (6/9) and KS classic 50% (2/4). Our data supports the concept that IL-23 might be a pro-carcinogenic mediator, detected in KS lesions, probably favoring the progression of the tumor.

KEY WORDS: Sarcoma; Kaposi; interleukin-23; tumor microenvironment.