Presence of beta human papillomaviruses in nonmelanoma skin cancer from organ transplant recipients and immunocompetent patients in the West of Scotland

Background  Nonmelanoma skin cancer (NMSC) has been linked to cutaneous human papillomaviruses of the genus beta (betaPV).
Objectives  We sought to assess the presence of betaPV in NMSC biopsies from a group of Scottish skin cancer patients, both immunocompetent (IC) patients and immunosuppressed (IS) organ transplant recipients.
Methods  One hundred and twenty-one paraffin-embedded skin tumours (27 actinic keratosis, 41 intraepidermal carcinoma, 53 squamous cell carcinoma) and 11 normal skin samples were analysed for the presence of betaPV by a polymerase chain reaction–reverse hybridization assay designed to detect the presence of the 25 known betaPV genotypes.
Results  In IC patients, betaPV was detected in 30 of 59 (51%) tumours and two of 11 (18%) normal skin samples ( P  =   0·046). In IS patients, betaPV was found in 27 of 62 (44%) tumours; no normal skin samples were available for comparison. The most frequently found genotypes were HPV-24, HPV-15 and HPV-38. Of those tumours infected with betaPV, 28 of 57 (49%) were infected with more than one genotype (range 2–8). Tumours from IS patients were from a younger age group (mean age 57·4 years) than IC patients (mean age 73·8 years). Multiple infections were more common in tumours from IC patients (21 of 30; 70%) compared with those from IS patients (seven of 27; 26%) ( P  <   0·001). In the IC group, age did not appear to influence the distribution of single and multiple infections whereas in IS patients the proportion of multiple infections to single infections increased with age. There were no multiple infections in normal skin.
Conclusions  A wide spectrum of betaPV types was detected in our samples. Further characterization of betaPV in vivo is needed in order to determine the mechanisms by which the virus contributes to cutaneous carcinogenesis.     

Acquired Cutis Laxa in Childhood Sweet's Syndrome

Abstract:  In Sweet's syndrome, the essential features are the characteristic morphology of the lesions, their histologic appearance, the dramatic response to corticosteroids and the absence of scarring. We report an 8-month-old infant in whom Sweet's syndrome was diagnosed and who developed acquired cutis laxa in the skin lesions.     

Localized bullous pemphigoid in a patient with primary lymphoedema tarda

We report a case of localized bullous pemphigoid (BP) in a woman patient with primary lymphoedema tarda. There is only one previous case reported of localized pemphigoid in an area of lymphoedema, this being of the cicatricial variant. Slow circulation in the lymphatic vessels, increased capillary permeability with preferential localization of antibodies in the area, and potential cleavage of the epidermal junction due to increased hydrostatic pressure leading to autoimmunity, have all been advocated as possible pathogenic mechanisms. Nevertheless, we consider that the mechanism by which localized pemphigoid arises on lymphoedema remains elusive, based on a previous case of generalized BP sparing an area of postsurgical lymphoedema.