Changes in collagen I and collagen III metabolism in patients with generalized atopic eczema undergoing medium-dose ultraviolet A1 phototherapy

M. Mempel, T. Schmidt, K. Boeck, K. Brockow, S. Stachowitz, H. Fesq, T. Schäfer, S. Thomsen, C. Schnopp, J. Ring, R. Probst, P. Luppa, D. Abeck

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25 Scopus citations

Abstract

Fourteen patients suffering from acute, exacerbated atopic eczema were screened for changes in collagen I and collagen III metabolism in serum (n = 11), urine (n = 11) and skin biopsies (n = 9) before and after medium-dose ultraviolet (UV) A1 phototherapy (15 exposures of 50 J/cm2 over a 3-week period, total dose 750 J/cm2). Mature collagen I and, to a lesser extent, mature collagen III were found to be decreased after the therapy in skin samples from the irradiated patients. As markers of collagen I degradation, the cross-links pyridoline and deoxypyridoline were analysed in urine using high-performance liquid chromatography. Both cross-links were found to be mildly increased after UVA1 phototherapy, without reaching statistical significance. As markers of de novo collagen synthesis we screened for the procollagen I-carboxyterminal peptide (PICP) and procollagen III- aminoterminal peptide (PIIINP) levels in serum and skin. The ratio of PICP to PIIINP in serum dropped significantly after the UVA1 phototherapy, suggesting a different impact of UVA1 on the two collagens. These findings were paralleled by a diminished ratio of PICP to PIIINP in tissue samples. Staining for matrix metalloproteinase 1 (MMP-1) and its specific counterpart, tissue inhibitor of MMP-1 (TIMP-1), showed slight increases for both proteins by therapeutic UVA1; this was also seen in serum for TIMP-1 but not MMP-1. In our study, high-energy UVA1 doses induced changes of the skin collagens in patients with atopic eczema which are measurable by their metabolites in serum and urine.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)473-480
Number of pages8
JournalBritish Journal of Dermatology
Volume142
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - 2000

Keywords

  • Atopic eczema
  • Collagen I
  • Collagen III
  • Matrix metalloproteinase 1
  • Procollagen I-carboxyterminal peptide
  • Procollagen III-aminoterminal peptide
  • Tissue inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinase 1
  • Ultraviolet A1 phototherapy

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