THE LEVEL OF THE COLLAGEN CROSS-LINK PYRIDINOLINE REFLECTS THE IMPROVEMENT OF CUTANEOUS LESIONS IN ONE CASE OF SKIN ALVEOLAR ECHINOCOCCOSIS

Cutaneous parasitic lesions, associated with a dense fibrous reaction, markedly improved under albendazole treatment in one case of supraumb ilical skin localization of alveolar echinococcosis. Since collagen cr oss-linking increases during fibrogenesis and contributes to the stabi lity of fibrotic lesions, we monitored the level of the cross-links py ridinoline and pentosidine in skin lesions from this patient to determ ine if they would reflect the changes occurring during treatment. We l ooked at the deposition of cross-linked type I collagen by immunohisto chemistry and also measured the serum concentrations of pentosidine an d of a fragment of type I collagen (ICTP), which contains a site of py ridinoline formation. Albendazole treatment did not affect either the collagen content of skin lesions or the serum concentrations of ICTP a nd pentosidine, but it led to a pronounced decrease in pyridinoline le vel concomitant with the disappearance, observed by immunohistochemist ry, of extensively cross-linked fibrotic type I collagen. The follow-u p of collagen cross-linking by pyridinoline in skin tissue thus appear s to be useful in reflecting the improvement of fibrotic skin diseases during therapy.