Studies on fibronectin in the skin. IV. Indirect immunofluorescence studies in lupus erythematosus.

Fibronectin is an important constituent of normal human skin, mediating cell/cell and cell/fibre interactions. In affected skin in discoid and systemic LE, changes in the distribution of fibronectin in the dermo-epidermal junction and in the papillary dermis are observed with homogenization and degenerative changes, IF negative gaps and slit formation in the dermo-epidermal region, together with IF positive globular bodies and transport of fibronectin into the epidermis. Unaffected skin in LE demonstrates the pattern of fibronectin as found in normal human skin.