Infiltrating T Cells and their Role in Vitiligo
Following proinflammatory signalling in the skin, melanocyte antigens
can be processed and presented by dendritic cells in the draining lymph
node, resulting in the production of melanocyte-specific cytotoxic T
lymphocytes and the generation of melanocyte-specific antibodies by B
lymphocytes [60]. Histological studies of vitiligo lesions showed
infiltration of lymphocytes at the border of depigmented lesions. These
infiltrates consist mainly of CD8 + T cells, preferentially located in
the dermo-epidermal borders neighbouring the melanocytes [61, 62].
CD8+ T cells are implicated in the destruction of melanocytes in
vitiligo. Melanocytotoxic CD8+ T cells that express the skin homing
marker, cutaneous lymphocyte-association antigen, infiltrate the
lesional borders of vitiliginous skin, and their number correlates with
disease extension and severity [63-65].