Preservation of Sebaceous Glands and Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor Gamma Expression in Central Centrifugal Cicatricial Alopecia

This study investigated the presence of sebaceous glands and the expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARy) in Central Centrifugal Cicatricial Alopecia (CCCA), a primary cicatricial alopecia most common in black women. The study included seven patients with biopsy-proven CCCA, six with Lichen planopilaris (LPP), and four with non-cicatricial alopecia as controls. Immunohistochemical staining was used to assess PPARy expression. The results showed that sebaceous glands were preserved in four of the seven CCCA cases, and PPARy intensity remained constant in all cases where sebaceous glands were observed. This suggests that, unlike in LPP and other primary cicatricial alopecias, early loss of sebaceous glands may not be a characteristic feature of CCCA. However, the study's limitations include a small sample size and being single-centered, which may affect the generalizability of the findings.