Anti-plakin and desmoglein autoantibodies in a dog with pemphigus vulgaris

Paraneoplastic pemphigus was suspected in a 14-year-old Labrador retriever because of mucocutaneous erosions, microscopic suprabasal acantholysis, and keratinocyte apoptosis. In this patient, circulating IgG autoantibodies re cognized plakin (envoplakin, periplakin) and desmoglein (desmoglein-1 and - 3) antigens. Necropsy, however, failed to confirm the concurrent existence of hematopoietic or solid neoplasia. The diagnosis of pemphigus vulgaris th erefore was proposed. This study illustrates that such a combination of cli nicopathologic lesions and plakin/desmoglein-specific autoantibodies is not restricted to canine paraneoplastic pemphigus but can also be detected in another form of suprabasal pemphigus.