Dermatology Commons^™

Pro-Inflammatory Chemokines And Cytokines Dominate The Blister Fluid Molecular Signature In Patients With Epidermolysis Bullosa And Affect Leukocyte And Stem Cell Migration., Vitali Alexeev, Julio Cesar Salas-Alanis, Francis Palisson, Lila Mukhtarzada, Giulio Fortuna, Jouni Uitto, Andrew P. South, Olga Igoucheva

Department of Dermatology and Cutaneous Biology Faculty Papers

Hereditary epidermolysis bullosa (EB) is associated with skin blistering and the development of chronic nonhealing wounds. Although clinical studies have shown that cell-based therapies improve wound healing, the recruitment of therapeutic cells to blistering skin and to more advanced skin lesions remains a challenge. Here, we analyzed cytokines and chemokines in blister fluids of patients affected by dystrophic, junctional, and simplex EB. Our analysis revealed high levels of CXCR1, CXCR2, CCR2, and CCR4 ligands, particularly dominant in dystrophic and junctional EB. In vitro migration assays demonstrated the preferential recruitment of CCR4⁺ lymphocytes and CXCR1⁺, CXCR2⁺, …