Dermatológia pre prax 1/2012

Autoimmune skin diseases I. Vitiligo, alopecia areata, psoriasis

Immunological tolerance is a complex series of mechanisms that impair the immune system to mount responses against self antigens. Failure or breakdown of these mechanisms results in autoimmunity and autoimmune diseases. Such events are related to both genetic and environmental factors, the latter being mainly represented by infections, stress factors or trauma. Autoimmune diseases represent a diverse family of disorders with different clinical presentations but with a common etiology that involves an immune response to autologous antigens. Autoimmune bullous dermatoses represent well-defined group of skin diseases mediated by autoantibodies directed against different epidermal/subepidermal autoantigens. There are several other dermatoses (e.g. vitiligo, alopecia areata and psoriasis) with presumed important role of cellular autoimmunity in pathogenesis, although the autoantigens are still unknown. Skin involvement is characteristic feature of clinical picture also of many systemic autoimmune diseases.

Keywords: immunological tolerance, autoimmunity, vitiligo, alopecia areata, psoriasis.