Background. Pemphigus vulgaris is an autoimmune vesiculobullous disease, affecting the skin and mucous membranes. It is reported to be associated with other autoimmune diseases including autoimmune thyroid diseases. However we report herein a case of pemphigus vulgaris associated with autonomous toxic nodule. Case Presentation. A 51-year-old woman was evaluated for blisters and erosions that de...

Desmogleins (Dsgs), cadherin-type cell adhesion molecules, are targeted in skin-blistering diseases such as pemphigus and staphylococcal scalded skin syndrome (SSSS). The role of Dsg4, a new isoform, was investigated in these diseases. Dsg4 was recognized by 30 (77%) of 39 pemphigus sera containing anti-Dsg1 IgG but not by 16 pemphigus sera containing no anti-Dsg1 IgG or by 34 normal control se...

BACKGROUND Despite the high incidence of pemphigus in the Jewish population, data on the epidemiology and etiology of the disease in Israel are sparse. OBJECTIVE This study was conducted to identify clinical and epidemiologic features of pemphigus patients in Israel, while searching for risk factors that induce or exacerbate the disease. METHODS Demographic and clinical information was reco...

The autoimmune blistering skin diseases pemphigus vulgaris (PV) and pemphigus foliaceus (PF) are mainly caused by autoantibodies against desmosomal cadherins. In this study, we provide evidence that PV-immunoglobulin G (IgG) and PF-IgG induce skin blistering by interference with Rho A signaling. In vitro, pemphigus IgG caused typical hallmarks of pemphigus pathogenesis such as epidermal blister...

BACKGROUND There are no reported epidemiological data regarding autoimmune pemphigus in the Afro-Caribbean population. OBJECTIVES To present the epidemiology of autoimmune pemphigus on the island of Guadeloupe (French West Indies, 400,736 inhabitants, mostly black Caribbean of African European descent). MATERIALS AND METHODS Five-year prospective study. Inclusion of the incident cases when ...

Pemphigus is an autoimmune blistering disease characterized by cutaneous and mucosal blisters and erosions. Though systemic corticosteroids have been the mainstay of treatment for pemphigus over the years, more recently research has focused on steroid-sparing agents. This review looks at the commonly used steroid-sparing agents in pemphigus and the evidence from randomized controlled trials (RC...

Pemphigus is an autoimmune blistering disease of the skin and mucous membranes. It is caused by autoantibodies directed against desmosomes, which are the principal adhesion structures between epidermal keratinocytes. Binding of autoantibodies leads to the destruction of desmosomes resulting in the loss of cell-cell adhesion (acantholysis) and epidermal blisters. The plasminogen activator system...

A variety of clinical and histological presentations can accompany the evolution of malignant melanoma. Unusual cytological variants of malignant melanoma include balloon cell, signet ring cell, myxoid and other metaplastic changes. With the exception of a case of pemphigus-like changes associated with malignant melanoma in paraneoplastic pemphigus, acantholysis is not a common histopathologica...

Pemphigus foliaceus is a rare, superficial form of pemphigus. Due to acantholysis localised in the stratum corneum or within the upper spinous layer of the epidermis, patients suffer mainly from extensive sores, while blisters are rarely found. The antigen in this form of pemphigus is desmoglein 1. The basic therapy consists of corticosteroids and immunosuppression, but in doses lower than in c...