Objective. The purpose of this study was to characterizethe number and distribution of epidermal Langerhans cells in different clinical forms of dry-type cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL). Methods. Sixteen cases of dry-type cutaneous leishmaniasis caused by Leishmania tropica were studied. These cases were classified clinically as five cases of acute leishmaniasis with indurated papules, nodules and plaques with central crust formation and duration 2 years, and five cases of chronic nonlupoid type with nonhealing lesions of duration >2 years. Paraffin-embedded blocks were stained with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) and stained immunohistochemically for CD1a. Results. The number of Langerhans cells per millimeter length of epidermis was increased in acute cases compared to chronic and lupoid cases. Conclusions. Lesions of acute leishmaniasis contain the greatest amounts of antigen for presentation, so Langerhans cells increase innumber and intrafficking to present antigens derived from Leishman bodies to the cellular immune system. In chronic leishmaniasis, the Langerhans cell population is reduced, perhaps because of exhaustion of the source of Langerhans cells, or because of reduced response to modified antigen.
展开▼
