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Immunology

Caruso R, Botti E, Sarra M et al. Nat Med 2009;15:1013–5.

T cells are a critical cell in the control of inflammatory responses in psoriatic skin. Interleukin-21 (IL-21), a T cell-derived cytokine, has recently been associated with the development of psoriasis through the discovery of a psoriasis susceptibility locus in the IL21 gene. The current authors carried out an investigation to further clarify the role of IL-21 in patients with psoriasis, and found that blockade of IL-21 activity reduces the infiltration of keratinocytes into the skin and reduces the overall inflammation.

 

In this brief communication, the current authors present a well-designed and thought-out investigation. It deals with the very core of the problem of psoriasis – the induction of hyperplasia of keratinocytes by the cells of the immune system (mainly T cells). The investigators have demonstrated that interleukin-21 (IL-21) is key in the induction of keratinocyte hyperplasia by T cells.

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