ABSTRACT
Immunofluorescence (IF) studies of psoriasis were introduced by Beutner et al.1 Deposition of immunoglobulins and complement in the stratum corneum (SC) constitute a characteristic feature of the disease. Comparative IF and histologic studies of 150 psoriasis and control subjects revealed that virtually all active psoriatic lesions with fully developed histologic features of the disease also had IgG deposits on the SC antigen sites. IF studies of the psoriasis of the scalp are of special interest because immune deposits were shown to be present only in the cornified parts of the hair follicles but not in the hair itself. In psoriatics in whom the H. Koebner phenomenon developed, the immune deposits were found beyond the edge of the crust appearing progressively in a focal, and later in a widespread distribution. Treatment of psoriatic lesions with topical agents or with PUVA therapy reduces the frequency with which immune deposits appear in psoriatic lesions.
