Conclusions
Our study provides novel insights into the mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis of HS, and the results also have potential clinical implications in both diagnosis and therapeutics.
Methods
Transcriptome profiling of perilesional and lesional skin of five patients with HS and six healthy control patients was performed by next-generation sequencing. Groups of differentially expressed genes characteristic of the skin of patients with HS were shortlisted by bioinformatic analysis.
Results
RNA sequencing followed by bioinformatic profiling revealed profound enrichment of inflammatory-related processes in both lesional and perilesional skin of patients with HS. There were, however, distinct differences in the gene expression profiles between the lesional and perilesional skin, with 1488 genes differentially expressed. Genes encoding typical proinflammatory cytokines were profoundly enriched within HS lesions. In contrast, those encoding mediators of extracellular matrix organization were highly expressed mostly in the perilesional area. Conclusions: Our study provides novel insights into the mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis of HS, and the results also have potential clinical implications in both diagnosis and therapeutics.