Staining of colloid bodies by keratin antisera in lichen planus.

Immune sera against total keratin, as well as three keratin polypeptide subunits, were raised in guinea pig with different bands of stratum corneum fibrous proteins derived from normal human epidermis and isolated by SDS polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The staining pattern of the different polypeptide antisera using the indirect immunofluorescence and immunoperoxidase methods in biopsy specimens of normal human epidermis confirmed recently published results. Biopsy specimens from 10 lesions of lichen planus were studied by indirect immunofluorescence and immunoperoxidase methods utilizing the same four different specific antikeratin immune sera. Most often the staining pattern with the different immune sera was similar to that seen in normal keratinized epidermis. In all specimens, intense staining of the colloid bodies was detected with the different immune sera. This finding favors the concept that colloid bodies originate from keratin filaments. Control staining with pre-immune serum was always negative. In one case of bullous lichen planus, colloid bodies were not labeled by 67 K and 62 K immune sera, but were intensely stained with 55 K and total keratin antisera. Moreover, with 55 K immune serum there was more intense staining of certain basal cells. The correlation between these findings and previously published studies by electron microscopy is discussed.