Pemphigus
A cause for skin blistering disease pops up
By Journal of Clinical Investigation
Apr 3, 2005, 13:44

Pemphigus is a skin blistering disease that causes separation of the layers of the skin, along with inflammation.

In a paper appearing in the April 1 issue of The Journal of Clinical Investigation, Zhi Liu and colleagues from the University of North Carolina use a mouse model of pemphigus to unravel the mechanisms of this disease.

The researchers show that activity of a protein called plasmin is an essential step in the early phase of blister formation in the mouse model. They further show that plasmin joins another protein, MMP-9, in a pathological signaling pathway during the early phase of disease.

According to a related commentary by Kim Yancey of the Medical College of Wisconsin, these results "will facilitate the development of effective interventions that counteract the chronic morbidity and, at times, mortality" of skin blistering diseases.

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