The role of dendritic cells in atopic dermatitis.

Atopic dermatitis(AD) is a biphasic inflammatory skin disease characterized by an initial phase predominated by Th2 cytokines which switches into a second and more chronic Th1 dominated eczematous phase. Two different, the high affinity receptor for IgE(FcεRI) bearing dendritic cell subtypes have been identified in the skin of AD patients: FcεRIhigh Langerhans cells(LC) and FcεRIhigh inflammatory dendritic epidermal cells(IDEC). These two dendritic cell subtypes are supposed to contribute distinctly to the biphasic nature and the outcome of T-cell responses in AD. In the light of recent developments a picture emerges that different IgE-receptor bearing DC subtypes in the blood and the skin of AD patients play a pivotal role in the complex pathophysiological network of AD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]