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Autoimmune diseases are devastating conditions in which the immune system is directed against the host, leading to life-threatening destruction of organs. Although autoantigens are ill-defined in most autoimmune diseases, this is not the case in the skin. Autoimmune bullous diseases have been extensively studied with detailed characterization of autoantigens, the epitopes that are targeted, and the mechanisms of action that mediate autoimmune tissue destruction. Pemphigus is an autoimmune bullous disease caused by circulating IgG that targets two desmosomal proteins, desmoglein 1 and 3, which are crucial for cell–cell adhesion of keratinocytes. Binding of auto-antibodies to desmogleins impairs keratinocyte adhesion, leading to severe blistering disease. Mouse models that recapitulate the human disease have been instrumental in elucidating the detailed pathophysiology. Taking advantage of the fact that desmogleins are specifically targeted in pemphigus, studying humoral and cellular autoimmunity against these autoantigens provides us with an opportunity to understand not only the effector mechanisms of B and T cells in mediating pathology but also how autoreactive lymphocytes are regulated during development in the thymus and post-development in the periphery. This review introduces pemphigus and its subtypes as prototypic autoimmune diseases from which recent basic and translational developments should provide insight into how autoimmunity develops.

The pathological mechanisms and immunological kinetics of drug-induced hypersensitivity syndrome (DIHS), including the relevance of interleukin (IL)-6, remain unclear. We report a case of drug adverse reaction that does not fulfill the diagnostic criteria of DIHS but mimics its characteristic features. Because the patient was under anti-IL-6 therapy at the onset, some symptoms typically seen in DIHS were absent, such as fever and leukocyte count abnormalities. However, the characteristic features of DIHS were clearly observed in the subsequent course, including the repeated recurrence of skin rash, prolonged liver dysfunction and reactivation of herpes viruses. This case suggested that IL-6 role at the onset is not a main factor to determine the subsequent pathomechanism of DIHS and attention should be paid to the preceding therapy for achieving accurate diagnosis.

Both acquired perforating dermatosis (APD) and bullous pemphigoid (BP) are associated with a wide variety of systemic and cutaneous disorders [1, 2]. However, coexistence of APD and BP has never been reported. Herein, we describe three patients with coexisting BP and APD. The patients had several common features, suggesting that this condition is a new and unique clinical presentation associated with BP.Patient 1 was a 65-year-old male who presented with a three-month history of pruritic skin lesions [...]