# DERMATITIS HERPETIFORMIS & THE MUCOSAL IMMUNE RESPONSE

> **NIH NIH R01** · DUKE UNIVERSITY · 1989 · $106,677

## Abstract

Dermatitis herpetiformis (DH) is a blistering skin disease
characterized by the presence of cutaneous deposits of IgA, an
associated gluten sensitive enteropathy, and a high incidence of
the HLA B8/DR3 haplotype.  The purpose of this project is to
investigate the role of the mucosal immune response (MIR), the
cutaneous IgA deposits and the HLA association in the
pathophysiology of DH.  The specific aims are:  1.  Determine the
relationship between serum and secretory antibodies directed
against dietary antigens and the factors important in their origin
and antigenic specificity.  2. Elute and characterize the IgA in DH
skin.  3. Characterize the IgA binding sites in DH skin.  4.
Investigate the nature of the HLA class II region gene structure to
determine if unique differences are present in patients with DH.
The relationship between serum and secretory antibodies to
dietary antigens will be determined by comparing isoelectric
focusing (IEF) spectrotypes and analysis of idiotypic (Id)
specificity.  Affinity purified IgA antibodies against dietary
antigens will be used to raise anti-Id antibodies.  These anti-Id
antibodies will be used to determine if cross-reactive idiotypes
(CRI) are present in patients with DH, if secretory and serum
antibodies express CRI and if the cutaneous IgA deposits express
CRI.  Serum and secretory IgA antibodies against dietary antigens
will be examined for cross-reactivity against other dietary
antigens and against peptides from human adenovirus.  IgA binding
structures in DH skin will be determined using gold labeled
antibodies and immunoelectron microscopy.  In addition,
immunoprecipitation experiments using DH and normal fibroblasts
will be done to evaluate the nature of dermal micro-fibrillar
proteins and IgA binding proteins.  IgA eluted from DH skin and
affinity purified from serum will be analyzed by IEF and tested
for binding to normal and DH skin.  Finally, genomic DNA from
patients with DH and normal subjects will be examined using
cDNA for HLA DP, DQ and DR genes to determine if HLA class II
region gene express distinctive polymorphisms.  These studies will
provide insights into the pathophysiology of DH, the relationship
of the serum and secretory IgA responses to mucosal antigen
exposure and the role of HLA associations in autoimmune disease.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 3156925
- **Project number:** 5R01AR034718-05
- **Recipient organization:** DUKE UNIVERSITY
- **SAM.gov UEI:** TP7EK8DZV6N5
- **Principal Investigator:** RUSSELL P. HALL
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 1989
- **Award amount:** $106,677
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 1985-07-01 → 1993-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/3156925

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 3156925, DERMATITIS HERPETIFORMIS & THE MUCOSAL IMMUNE RESPONSE (5R01AR034718-05). Retrieved via MORVS 2026-10-24 from https://api.morvs.ai/grant/nih/3156925. Licensed CC0.

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