Selenium status in psoriasis and its relationship with alcohol consumption

The aim of the study was to examine the influence of alcohol consumption on the severity of psoriasis and selenium (Se) concentration and Se-dependent gluathione peroxidase activity in plasma (pl-GSH-Px) and in erythrocytes (RBC-GSH-Px) in psoriatic patients. Thirty-five in-patients with psoriasis lasting <10 mo and 42 with psoriasis lasting >3 yr constituted groups 1 and 2, respectively. The severity of psoriasis was assessed using the PASI scoring system and the consumption of alcohol, using a structured questionnaire. The Se concentration was 47.11 +/- 11.61 mug/L in group 1 and 38.69 +/- 13.22 mug/L in group 2 (p < 0.05), the pl-GSH-Px was 0.15 +/- 0.04 U/mL and 0.14 +/- 0.04 U/mL (p > 0.05), and the RBC-GSH-Px was 13.97 +/- 4.27 U/g Hb and 13.16 +/- 3.85 U/g Hb (p > 0.05), respectively. In excessive drinkers (<10% of patients, all males), the Se concentration was 32.84 +/- 10.88 pg/L, the pl-GSH-Px was 0.15 +/- 0.03 U/mL, and the RBC-GSH-Px was 11.64 +/- 3.32 U/g Hb. A low RBC-GSH-Px correlated to the consumption of high-grade alcoholic beverages (R = -0.45, p < 0.05) and to the PASI value (R = -0.37, p < 0.05) in group 2. Depressed Se concentration and Se-dependent GSH-Px can be related to the severity and a duration of psoriasis. The excessive consumption of alcohol is associated with severity of the disease and with low activity of GSH-Px in erythrocytes in patients with long-lasting psoriasis.