IgG antibodies against immunodominant C-terminal epitopes of BP230 do not induce skin blistering in mice
24.01.2014
Feldrihan V, Licarete E, Florea F, Cristea V, Popescu O, Sitaru C, Chiriac MT
Hum Immunol. 2014;75(4):354-63
Bullous pemphigoid, the most common autoimmune blistering disease in Western Europe and the USA is characterized by the presence of circulating and tissue-bound autoantibodies against the hemidesmosomal proteins BP230 and BP180/collagen XVII. Whereas the role of anti-BP180 antibodies has been extensively characterized, few and conflicting data is available on the contribution of anti-BP230 antibodies to bullous pemphigoid pathogenesis. Therefore, we addressed in the present study the role of autoantibodies to BP230 in experimental bullous pemphigoid. Our present findings demonstrate that antibodies against BP230 are non-pathogenic in experimental models of bullous pemphigoid and suggest that proper activation of the complement and granulocytes represent prerequisites for conferring bullous pemphigoid autoantibodies their tissue destructive potential.
