Abstract

We investigated the presence of bullous pemphigoid antibodies in bullous pemphigoid sera that are negative by standard indirect immunofluorescence. We incubated each of four indirect immunofluorescence-positive bullous pemphigoid sera, seven indirect immunofluorescence-negative bullous pemphigoid sera, one indirect immunofluorescence-negative herpes gestationis serum, three indirect immunofluorescence-positive epidermolysis bullosa acquisita sera, five indirect immunofluorescence-negative epidermolysis bullosa acquisita sera, and two normal human sera with fresh human skin explants in medium 199 at 4 degrees C for 48 h. All bullous pemphigoid sera, herpes gestations serum, and the three indirect immunofluorescence-positive epidermolysis bullosa acquisita sera had IgG that bound the basement membrane zone of skin explants with moderate to marked intensity as demonstrated by immunofluorescence. Normal sera and indirect immunofluorescence-negative epidermolysis bullosa acquisita sera failed to bind the explant basement membrane zone. Immunoblotting of bullous pemphigoid sera showed five of seven indirect immunofluorescence-negative bullous pemphigoid sera to bind high-molecular weight and/or low-molecular weight bullous pemphigoid antigens from epidermal extracts. We conclude that the skin explant culture system is a very sensitive method for the detection of bullous pemphigoid antibodies in all bullous pemphigoid sera.

Talk to us

Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have

Schedule a call

Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.