The etiopathogenesis of otosclerosis is still controversially discussed. The major hypotheses discussed are a viral infection on a genetic background and an (autoimmune) collagen disease. The aim of our study was to investigate by immunohistochemistry the expression pattern of collagens within the otosclerotic focus. Stapes footplates from 30 patients with clinical otosclerosis undergoing stape...

Collagen is the fundamental structural component of a wide range of connective tissues and of the extracellular matrix. It undergoes self-assembly from individual triple-helical proteins into well-ordered fibrils, a process that is key to tissue development and homeostasis, and to processes such as wound healing. Nucleation of this assembly is known to be slowed considerably by pepsin removal o...

Larvae of the human parasite Schistosoma mansoni, which invade the vascular system through the skin, secrete proteinases that degrade radioactively labeled extracellular matrices produced by smooth-muscle cells, dermal fibroblasts and endothelial cells. The proteinase purified from one larval form, the cercaria, degrades fibronectin and laminin and is a type-specific collagenase with activity a...