Reduced type I collagen gene expression by skin fibroblasts of patients with systemic sclerosis after one treatment course with rituximab

摘要

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a connective tissue disease characterised by increased production of extracellular matrix by fibroblasts, both in the skin and in visceral organs. The aetiology is unknown, and key pathogenetic events include immune system activation, en-dothelial cell dysfunction and fibroblast activation (1-3).Although current therapies can control end organ damage (4), no disease-modifying agent able to induce complete remission of the disease is available yet, probably due to the poor knowledge of the mechanisms implicated in the pathophysiology of the disease (5).