Lichen Planus Annularis: An Immunohistochemical Study

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Inc

E-ISSN: 1346-8138|19|7|414-419

ISSN: 0385-2407

Source: THE JOURNAL OF DERMATOLOGY, Vol.19, Iss.7, 1992-07, pp. : 414-419

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Abstract

AbstractLichen planus annularis is a relatively rare skin manifestation of lichen planus. The mechanisms in the formation of annular lesions are not fully understood. We reported here a 57‐year‐old female with this disease. The eruption initially occurred as lichen‐papules, then enlarged (bean‐sized, umbilicated small plaques), and finally developed annular manifestations. We performed immunohistochemical examinations of specimens taken from different types of eruptions.In all specimens, HLA‐DR was expressed in the focal keratinocytes adjacent to the dermal HLA‐DR positive cell infiltration. Both in the initial papule and in the final annular lesion, expression of ICAM‐1 was present only in the keratinocytes above the dermal cell infiltration, similar to HLA‐DR. It is of interest that, in the umbilicated small plaques, the peripheral epidermis other than the central site extensively reacted to ICAM‐1. LFA‐1 expression was most prominent in the mononuclear cells impinging on the dermo‐epidermal junction in all specimens. In addition, in the periphery of the umbilicated small plaques, which showed no bandlike dense cell infiltration nor degeneration of basement membrane, TNF‐alpha, but not LFA‐1, was positive in the infiltrated cells of the upper dermis.These results suggest that expressions of ICAM‐1 and TNF‐alpha in the peripheral keratinocytes and dermal infiltrated cells are important molecular events in the mechanisms of formation of the annular lesions.