Z. Lazarova et al., PASSIVE TRANSFER OF ANTI-LAMININ-5 ANTIBODIES INDUCES SUBEPIDERMAL BLISTERS IN NEONATAL MICE, The Journal of clinical investigation, 98(7), 1996, pp. 1509-1518
Patients with a recently identified subepithelial blistering disease h
ave IgG anti-laminin 5 autoantibodies. To determine if such antibodies
can be pathogenic in vivo, we developed and characterized rabbit anti
-laminin 5 IgG, and passively transferred these antibodies to neonatal
mice. Immune rabbit IgG specifically bound human and murine epidermal
basement membranes, immunoblotted and immunoprecipitated all laminin
5 subunits from extracts of human and murine keratinocytes, and showed
no reactivity to other keratinocyte proteins or epithelial basement m
embranes that do not contain laminin 5. Mice (n=29) receiving purified
anti-laminin 5 IgG developed, in a dose-related fashion, circulating
anti-laminin 5 antibodies, deposits of rabbit IgG and murine C3 in epi
dermal basement membranes, and subepidermal blisters of skin and mucou
s membranes. No alterations developed in controls (n=14) receiving ide
ntical amounts of normal rabbit IgG. Passive transfer of antilaminin 5
(but not control) IgG to neonatal C5- (n=3) or mast cell-deficient (n
=3) mice produced subepidermal blisters with the same clinical, histol
ogic, and immunopathologic features as those documented in BALB/c mice
. These studies establish an animal model of a human blistering diseas
e that can be used to define disease mechanisms and treatment modaliti
es.