title: Apoptosis in the pathogenesis of cutaneous lupus erythematosus.
abstract: Defective regulation of apoptosis may play a role in the development of autoimmune diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus, in which the skin is a prominent target. To our knowledge, however, the nature of epidermal changes in cutaneous lupus erythematosus (LE) has not previously been investigated. We investigated the involvement of apoptosis in cutaneous LE. A total of 44 lesional skin samples from patients with cutaneous LE, 44 skin samples from patients with scleroderma, five skin specimens from patients suffering from dermatomyositis, and 13 normal skin samples were stained immunohistochemically with monoclonal antibodies to Ki-67, p53 (DO-7), and bcl-2. The lesional skin from cutaneous LE, except LE profundus, showed a marked increase in Ki-67- and p53-positive keratinocytes, which were predominantly located in the basal layer of the epidermis and follicle, and a drastic reduction in the number of bcl-2-positive cells localized in the basal cell compartment. With TdT-mediated dUTP-biotin nick end-labeling staining, we demonstrated that extensive apoptosis occurred in almost the whole epidermis of cutaneous LE, except in cases of LE profundus. This abnormal expression of Ki-67, p53, and bcl-2 and the occurrence of apoptosis in the epidermis was also observed in epidermis from patients with dermatomyositis, but not in that from patients with scleroderma.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, College of Medicine, Seoul National University, South Korea.
authors.forename: J H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Chung
authors.forename: O S
authors.initials: OS
authors.lastname: Kwon
authors.forename: H C
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Eun
authors.forename: J I
authors.initials: JI
authors.lastname: Youn
authors.forename: Y W
authors.initials: YW
authors.lastname: Song
authors.forename: J G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: K H
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Cho
mesh_terms: D017209:Apoptosis / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D000078404:Epidermal Cells; D004817:Epidermis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D005821:Genetic Techniques; D018859:Hair Follicle / Q000737:chemistry / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D015603:Keratinocytes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D019394:Ki-67 Antigen / Q000096:biosynthesis; D008178:Lupus Erythematosus, Cutaneous / Q000209:etiology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2 / Q000096:biosynthesis; D012867:Skin / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D012871:Skin Diseases / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D016159:Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 / Q000096:biosynthesis
chemical_list: D019394:Ki-67 Antigen; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2; D016159:Tumor Suppressor Protein p53