mAgK114 suppresses lymphocyte infiltration into epidermis in the picryl chloride-induced atopic dermatitis-like skin lesions of NC/Nga mice

BACKGROUND: We have previously shown that when mouse AgK114 (mAgK114, a glycosylphosphatidylinositol anchored membrane-associated protein) is applied to the wound area, the inflammatory responses in the early recovery phase of damaged tissue are enhanced and wound closure is accelerated. This suggests that mAgK114 has an important effect on skin wound repairing. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Whether mAgK114 supresses the development, in NC/Nga mice, of atopic dermatitis (AD)-like skin lesions induced by repeated application of 2,4,6-trinitrochlorobenzene (picryl chloride, PiCl) was examined under specific pathogen-free conditions. RESULTS: Histopathologically, the application of mAgK114-ointment to the PiCl-treated NC/Nga mice remarkably suppressed severe lymphocytic infiltration into the epidermis, although total skin severity scores, histological changes in hypertrophy, erosion and infiltration of inflammatory cells into the corium and subcutaneous tissues were comparable between the mAgK114-treated group of mice and the control group. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that mAgK114 would be beneficial for the treatment of atopic dermatitis by suppressing severe lymphocytic infiltration into the epidermis.