B-cell targeted therapies in pemphigus.

Pemphigus is a rare autoimmune disease of the skin, characterized by autoantibodies targeting adhesion proteins of the epidermis, in particular desmoglein 3 and desmoglein 1, that cause the loss of cell-cell adhesion and the formation of intraepidermal blisters. Given that these autoantibodies are both necessary and sufficient for pemphigus to occur, the goal of pemphigus therapy is the elimination of autoreactive Bcells responsible for...