Clinical Trial of Probiotic Supplementation in Psoriasis Vulgaris

Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease (chronic and recurrent) which is influenced by various factors, namely genetics, immunological processes, and environmental triggers such as infection, obesity, smoking, and drugs. Psoriasis can increase the incidence of other diseases such as joint disorders, cardiovascular disorders, and psychological. Symptoms of psoriasis on the skin are red, well-defined plaques covered with thick, white, layered scales. The incidence of psoriasis is quite large, known to affect 0.09 - 11.4% of the world's population with rates varying between regions. Data in Indonesia is estimated that there are 2-6 million psoriasis sufferers in 2010, with a prevalence range of 1-3% in several teaching hospitals. During the period from 2016 to 2018, psoriasis vulgaris patients in the outpatient unit of RSUD Dr. Soetomo Surabaya recorded as many as 208 or 0.46% of all skin patients.

One of the mechanisms of psoriasis is abnormalities in Treg cells (cells that play a role in expressing Foxp3), resulting in an imbalance in the immune system with the dominance of T helper 1 (Th1) and T helper 17 (Th17) cells. In addition, the composition of the gut microbiota (collection of bacteria) in psoriasis patients is different from that of healthy people. The composition of the gut microbiota can be influenced by race, geography, and eating habits. Until now there has been no report on the intestinal microbiota profile of psoriasis patients in Indonesia.

The provision of probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum IS-10506, is expected to be an effective, safe, and affordable alternative for psoriasis treatment for psoriasis patients in Indonesia. Lactobacillus plantarum IS-10506 is produced from Dadih, a traditional fermented milk from West Sumatra, Indonesia. This probiotic is expected to be most compatible with the composition of the gut microbiota of Indonesians because it comes from an environment with similar exposure to pathogenic bacteria.

This study aimed to evaluate changes in gut microbiota profile, cytokines IL-17, TNF-a, IL-10, Foxp3, and disease severity of psoriasis vulgaris patients after supplementation with Lactobacillus plantarum IS-10506. The results of this study are expected to be the basis for the use of Lactobacillus plantarum IS-10506 in the therapy of psoriasis vulgaris which is included in the Clinical Practice Guide in Indonesia, which will ultimately help improve the quality of life of psoriasis patients.