Acantholysis induced by proteolytic enzymes. II. Enzyme fractions produced by Trichophyton mentagrophytes.

Trichophyton mentagrophytes produces three enzyme fractions of molecular weight 65,000, 92,000 and 18,000, respectively. Normal human skin was cultivated and the specimens were subjected to electron microscopy. Enzyme fraction I showed the capacity to induce epidermal acantholysis and dermo-epidermal separation, while the other two fractions showed no proteolytic nor keratinolytic action in cultivated skin.