Extracorporeal photochemotherapy or photopheresis is an immunomodulatory therapy that combines leukapheresis with phototherapy. Blood from the patient is processed to give a leukocyte-rich plasma, which is then treated ex vivo with a photosensitizer and ultraviolet A radiation before reinfusion back into the patient. The exact mechanism of action of photopheresis has not been fully elucidated a...

The association between psoriasis vulgaris and bullous pemphigoid is due to the still unclear autoimmune process. The common disease site is the dermo-epidermal junction or basal membrane zone (BMZ), with specific alterations for both diseases. Photochemotherapy (PUVA) is one of the therapeutic modalities for psoriasis and can trigger production of autoantibodies against antigens in the BMZ in ...

To the Editor: We report the case of an 80-yearold man with localized scleroderma, treated successfully with PUVA therapy. The patient came to our office with progressive hardening of his abdominal skin. Clinical examination (Fig. 1) showed a large (25 cm in diameter) slightly erythematous plaque that could not be pinched and made it difficult for the patient to bend down. The lesion margins we...

Cells of the established line NHIK 3025 were incubated with hematoporphyrin derivative and exposed to light at different concentrations of oxygen. The efficiency of photoinactivation of the sensitized cells decreased with decreasing oxygen concentration. No photoinactivation was observed when the atmosphere above the medium overlying the cells was pure N2 gas. With 1% O2 in the atmosphere, the ...

Ruthenium polypyridyl complexes have received widespread attention as potential chemotherapeutics in photodynamic therapy (PDT) and in photochemotherapy (PACT). Here, we investigate a series of sixteen ruthenium polypyridyl complexes with general formula [Ru(tpy)(N-N)(L)]+/2+ (tpy=2,2':6',2''-terpyridine, N-N=bpy (2,2'-bipyridine), phen (1,10-phenanthroline), dpq (pyrazino[2,3-f][1,10]phenanthr...

Chlorpromazine, a widely used tranquilizing drug of the phenothiazine group, was found to be a very potent photochemical inactivator of both deoxyribonucleic acid and ribonucleic acid viruses in the presence of long-wave ultraviolet light (320 to 380 nm). Neither the light alone nor chlorpromazine alone caused any appreciable inactivation. The known chlorpromazine photoreactions with nucleic ac...

Ichthyosiform eruption as a specific manifestation of mycosis fungoides is very rare and only a few such cases have currently been reported in the medical literature. A 63-year-old Korean man presented with a 4-year history of a pruritic ichthyotic eruption. There was no personal or family history of ichthyosis or atopy. The ichthyosiform skin changes involved the abdomen, arms, thighs and shin...