Erythema multiforme associated with autoreactivity to 17 alpha-hydroxyprogesterone.

Abstract

We report a case of a 23-year-old woman who was afflicted with disseminated skin erythema multiforme-like eruptions that started at the menarche, relapsed at the premenstrual periods, dramatically spread during two pregnancies and cleared after abortion; the skin lesions responded dramatically to thalidomide treatment. A high-affinity binding factor to 17 alpha-hydroxyprogesterone (17-OHP) was found in the serum of this patient. Her lymphocytes did not proliferate in vitro after exposure to exogenous 17-OHP but showed significant chromatin activation. There was a decreased expression of HLA antigens at the surface of the patient's blood lymphocytes. This is a unique well-documented case of erythema multiforme most possibly due to autoreactivity to 17-OHP; the precise mechanism(s) of this autoreactivity has not been established.

• Authors: J S Pinto, L Sobrinho, M B da Silva, M T Porto, M A Santos, M Baló-Banga, M Arala-Chaves
• Journal: Dermatologica (Dermatologica) Vol. 180 Issue 3 Pg. 146-50 ( 1990) ISSN: 0011-9075 [Print] Switzerland
• PMID: 2340924 (Publication Type: Case Reports, Journal Article)

Chemical References

• HLA Antigens
• Hydroxyprogesterones
• Thalidomide
• 17-alpha-Hydroxyprogesterone

Topics

• 17-alpha-Hydroxyprogesterone
• Adult
• Erythema Multiforme (drug therapy, immunology)
• Female
• HLA Antigens (analysis)
• Humans
• Hydroxyprogesterones (immunology)
• Lymphocytes (immunology)
• Menstrual Cycle
• Thalidomide (administration & dosage, therapeutic use)