Hair Follicle Stem Cells in the Pathogenesis of the Scarring Process in Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus
January 2009
in “
Autoimmunity Reviews
”
TLDR Damage to hair follicle stem cells causes permanent hair loss and scarring in cutaneous lupus erythematosus.
In the study of cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE), particularly chronic CLE (CCLE), it was found that inflammation often targeted the bulge area of hair follicles, where stem cells reside. This damage to stem cells, marked by a decrease and eventual absence of cytokeratin 15 (CK15) expression, suggested a mechanism for permanent follicle loss and scarring. The involvement of the bulge region in the scarring process was also observed in other types of cicatricial alopecia, indicating that the surrounding inflammatory cell infiltrate secondarily affected the hair follicles.