Pathogenesis of Psoriasis: A new angle with Mast cell

---

Original Article

Author Details : R. Shubha Sangeetha, HT Jayaprakash

Volume : 3, Issue : 4, Year : 2016

Article Page : 617-621

Suggest article by email

Get Permission

---

Abstract

Background: Mast cells are bone marrow derived cells which have captured the interest of the medical fraternity since more than a century. Mast cells exhibit a constellation of biophysical functions and has been regarded as the “major cell” in inflammation and immunity. The presence of mast cells, often in an activated state or increased numbers has been noted in various cutaneous disorders.
Aims and Objectives: To study the variations of mast cells in psoriatic skin lesions. To analyse the possible pathophysiological role of mast cells in psoriasis.
Methods: A total of 100 cases of psoriasis were prospectively studied. Skin biopsies received in the Department of Pathology Dr. BR Ambedkar Medical College/Hospital, Bangalore were fixed in 10% formalin and routinely processed. 3-5 µ thin sections were cut and stained with Haematoxylin and Eosin. All sections were stained with Toluidine blue to selectively identify and count mast cells.10 control sections were studied. Mast cell variations in terms of morphology, distribution and count were studied in psoriasis. Mean mast cell count were calculated and statistically analysed using student’s t test.
Results: Mast cells revealed a varied morphology and distribution often exhibiting an activated state and statistically significant increase (P value< 0.0001) in mast cell numbers in psoriasis when compared to the normal skin control.
Conclusion: This study highlights the definitive pathophysiological contribution of mast cells in psoriasis and suggests that mast cells are of primary importance in these lesions and their presence does not merely represent a secondary event.

Keywords: Mast cells, Metachromasia, Psoriasis, Mast cell profile, Toluidine blue, Student’s t test

How to cite : Sangeetha R S, Jayaprakash H, Pathogenesis of Psoriasis: A new angle with Mast cell. Indian J Pathol Oncol 2016;3(4):617-621

This is an Open Access (OA) journal, and articles are distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 License, which allows others to remix, tweak, and build upon the work non-commercially, as long as appropriate credit is given and the new creations are licensed under the identical terms.