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Topical application of Dermatophagoides farinae or oxazolone induces symptoms of atopic dermatitis in the rabbit ear

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Abstract

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronically relapsing inflammatory skin disease characterized by hyperproliferation and abnormal differentiation of the epidermis, and dermal infiltration of inflammatory cells. Appropriate animal models that recapitulate human AD and allow the analysis of disease processes in a reliable manner are essential to the study of AD. In this study, we established two AD models in rabbits by applying an allergen, Dermatophagoides farinae (Der f), or a hapten, oxazolone (OXZ). Application of the allergen or hapten induced a rapid onset and a chronically sustained AD-like skin lesion. The clinical symptoms, which include skin erythema, scaling, papula and edema, of AD-like rabbit skin were similar to those in human AD. Histological analysis showed that allergen- or hapten-treated rabbit skin showed increased epidermal thickening and inflammatory cell infiltration. Furthermore, PCNA and keratin 10 (K10) staining revealed excessive proliferation and insufficient differentiation of the epidermis in the rabbit AD-like skin. Western blot analysis showed decreased expression of thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP), an AD cytokine, in the rabbit AD-like skin. Our results suggest that the allergen- or hapten-induced rabbit AD models have pathological features of human AD-like symptoms and will be useful for evaluating both pathogenic mechanisms and potential therapeutic agents for human AD.

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Abbreviations

ACD:

Acute allergic contact dermatitis

AD:

Atopic dermatitis

Der f:

Dermatophagoides farinae

H&E:

Hematoxylin and eosin

K10:

Keratin 10

OXZ:

Oxazolone

TIS:

Three item severity

TSLP:

Thymic stromal lymphopoietin

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Acknowledgements

We thank Dr. Emily Friedrich for the critical review of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Burns, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, GD, 510080, China

    Jingling Zhao

  2. Laboratory for Tissue Repair and Regenerative Surgery, Plastic Surgery Division, Department of Surgery, Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine, 745 Fairbanks Ct, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA

    Jingling Zhao, Shengxian Jia, Ping Xie, Gabriel A. Arenas, Robert D. Galiano, Seok Jong Hong & Thomas A. Mustoe

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  1. Jingling Zhao
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Correspondence to Seok Jong Hong or Thomas A. Mustoe.

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The authors state no conflict of interest.

Ethical approval

Animal experiments were performed in accordance with the recommendations described in the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals of the National Institutes of Health. The protocol was approved by the Northwestern University Animal Care and Use Committee (ACUC).

Funding

This work was supported by internal funding from the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine.

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Zhao, J., Jia, S., Xie, P. et al. Topical application of Dermatophagoides farinae or oxazolone induces symptoms of atopic dermatitis in the rabbit ear. Arch Dermatol Res 309, 567–578 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00403-017-1758-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00403-017-1758-8

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