Liang Y, Marcusson J A, Jacobi H H, Haak-Frendscho M, Johansson O
Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden.
J Cutan Pathol. 1998 Apr;25(4):189-98. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0560.1998.tb01718.x.
The mast cell, which is a histamine-containing cell, has been found to have far more functions in skin inflammation than hitherto understood. To investigate the appearance of mast cells in prurigo nodularis, histamine immunohistochemistry in combination with nerve growth factor receptor (NGFr) double-staining as well as electron microscopic studies were performed. The results revealed that the histamine-containing cell number was increased in the lesional dermis. The mast cell size was also increased and the shape had become more dendritic. They tended to contact the epidermis and even infiltrated into it. In the histamine and NGFr double-staining, both an increased histamine-containing mast cell number and an increased number of NGFr-immunoreactive nerve fiber profiles were revealed in the upper dermis of the prurigo nodularis lesional skin. Mast cells were seen in close vicinity to NGFr-positive nerves and sometimes even seemingly to contact single nerve fibers. At the ultrastructural level, it is obvious that the mast cell bodies become larger, having more abundant cytoplasm and organelles (e.g. mitochondria), but comparatively fewer characteristic granules. Mast cells were often observed to sprout long dendrites, with or without granules. The cells were also frequently seen to contact other cell types, and a mast cell infiltration into the epidermis was also found. The statistical results of mast cell numbers showed a significant increase in prurigo nodularis lesional skin compared to the normal controls. The present results further indicate that mast cells, together with cutaneous nerve fibers, are actively involved in the pathogenesis of the disease.
肥大细胞是一种含组胺的细胞，现已发现其在皮肤炎症中的功能远比迄今所了解的要多。为了研究结节性痒疹中肥大细胞的表现，进行了组胺免疫组织化学结合神经生长因子受体（NGFr）双重染色以及电子显微镜研究。结果显示，病变真皮中含组胺的细胞数量增加。肥大细胞的大小也增大，形状变得更具树突状。它们倾向于与表皮接触，甚至浸润到表皮中。在组胺和NGFr双重染色中，结节性痒疹病变皮肤的真皮上层中含组胺的肥大细胞数量增加，且NGFr免疫反应性神经纤维束数量也增加。肥大细胞可见于与NGFr阳性神经紧邻处，有时甚至似乎与单条神经纤维接触。在超微结构水平上，明显可见肥大细胞体变大，细胞质和细胞器（如线粒体）更丰富，但特征性颗粒相对较少。经常观察到肥大细胞长出长的树突，有或没有颗粒。还经常看到这些细胞与其他细胞类型接触，并且也发现有肥大细胞浸润到表皮中。肥大细胞数量的统计结果显示，与正常对照相比，结节性痒疹病变皮肤中的肥大细胞数量显著增加。目前的结果进一步表明，肥大细胞与皮肤神经纤维一起，积极参与了该疾病的发病机制。
