Skin antibodies in bone marrow transplanted patients

Direct and indirect immunofluorescent studies were performed in seventeen bone marrow transplanted patients (BMT). No immunoglobulins were found in the maculo papular lesions of the early graft versus host reaction. Globular deposits of IgM and complement were found in the skin specimens from lichen planus like eruptions; these were very similar to those found in idiopathic lichen planus. Circulating epidermal cytoplasmic antibodies (ECA) were detected in 15 of 17 (88%) patients as shown by a longitudinal study of 118 sera. This frequency was significantly higher than in other groups in this study (133 subjects). ECA did not correlate with a graft versus host reaction. It is postulated that they develop as a consequence of chronic skin damage in subjects with disorders of the immune system which stimulate the production of numerous antibodies.