title: Cicatricial pemphigoid with autoantibodies against the laminin 5 gamma 2 subunit.
abstract: Cicatricial pemphigoid (CP) is an autoimmune bullous disease accompanied by mucosal lesions. The majority of patients with CP have autoantibodies against BP180. Anti-laminin 5 (epiligrin) CP is relatively rare. It is known that, in most cases, circulating autoantibodies against laminin 5 in these patients recognize the alpha3 and/or beta3 subunits of this molecule. Here we report a case of anti-laminin 5 CP, which showed IgG autoantibodies against the gamma2 subunit of laminin 5 alone. A 50-year-old woman suffered from skin blistering on the trunk and extremities and severe mucosal lesions in the eyes, oral cavities and laryngopharynx. Despite potent systemic steroids, the mucosal lesions and some parts of the skin lesions persisted. Salazosulfapyridine was of value in controlling the laryngopharyngeal lesions and persistent cutaneous blistering, and cyclophosphamide had definite effects especially on ocular lesions. Anti-laminin 5 autoantibodies became undetectable in serum from the patient after the disease was controlled.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan. dainichi@dermatol.med.kyushu-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Teruki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Dainichi
authors.forename: Hiromichi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Takeshita
authors.forename: Yoichi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Moroi
authors.forename: Kazunori
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Urabe
authors.forename: Mariko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yoshida
authors.forename: Yoshiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hisamatsu
authors.forename: Ayako
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Komai
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Duan
authors.forename: Tetsuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Koga
authors.forename: Takashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hashimoto
authors.forename: Masutaka
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Furue
mesh_terms: D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000276:immunology*; D001707:Biopsy, Needle; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D007797:Laminin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010390:Pemphigoid, Benign Mucous Membrane / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology*; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D007797:Laminin