Correlations between Psoriasis and Inflammatory Bowel Diseases

For a long time the relationship between inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) and psoriasis has been investigated by epidemiological studies. It is only starting from the 1990s that genetic and immunological aspects have been focused on. Psoriasis and IBD are strictly related inflammatory diseases. Skin and bowel represent, at the same time, barrier and connection between the inner and the outer sides of the body. The most important genetic correlations involve the chromosomal loci 6p22, 16q, 1p31, and 5q33 which map several genes involved in innate and adaptive immunity. The genetic background represents the substrate to the common immune processes involved in psoriasis and IBD. In the past, psoriasis and IBD were considered Th1-related disorders. Nowadays the role of new T cells populations has been highlighted. A key role is played by Th17 and T-regs cells as by the balance between these two cells types. New cytokines and T cells populations, as IL-17A, IL-22, and Th22 cells, could play an important pathogenetic role in psoriasis and IBD. The therapeutic overlaps further support the hypothesis of a common pathogenesis.