Targeting skin: vitiligo and autoimmunity.

In this issue, Singh and co-workers describe the results of classical typing of human leukocyte antigen (HLA) alleles in 1,404 vitiligo patients and 902 unaffected controls from North India and follow-up HLA typing in 355 cases and 441 controls from Gujarat. The increased frequency of DRB1*07:01 in North Indian and Gujarat populations with generalized and localized vitiligo and in several vitiligo populations studied previously suggests that it contributes to autoimmunity and destruction of melanocytes.