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Background: Actinic prurigo (AP) is an idiopathic photodermatosis, this entity requires exposure to UV-B and -A to develop lesions. Apoptosis is a physiological death program that can be initiated by a permanently active mechanism (extrinsic pathway) or irreparable damage (intrinsic pathway)., Material and Methods: Descriptive study, the sample size comprised 64 paraffin blocks of tissue with a diagnosis of AP. In H&E-stained slides, the diagnosis of AP was corroborated, and 1-µm-thick sections were processed for immunohistochemistry (IHC). A database was constructed with SPSS version 20, Inc., Chicago, IL, USA, and descriptive statistics were analyzed by X2 test and comparison of means., Results: A total of 64 cases were processed, of which 40 (62.5%) were cheilitis AP and 24 (37.5%) were AP in the skin. Of the 40 cheilitis samples, 27 were positive for Bcl-2 and caspase 3 (67.5%), p53 was expressed in 30 (75%). Of the skin lesions, p53 and caspase 3 were expressed in 18 of 24 cases (75%), and 13 were positive for Bcl-2 (54%)., Conclusions: We propose that apoptosis is the last step in the type IV subtype a-b hypersensitivity response-activation of the intrinsic pathway indicates that external factors, such as UV-A and -B are the trigger.

Introduction: Lupus erythematosus is a multisystemic disease that is characterized by autoantibody production and immune complex deposition in such tissues as the mucosa, joints, the central nervous system, and skin. Cutaneous lupus erythematosus is categorized as acute, subacute, and chronic. Chronic cutaneous lupus erythematosus comprises discoid lupus erythematosus (DLE) and lupus profundus (LP)., Aim: To analyze the expression of proapoptotic molecules in patients with lupus erythematosus discoid and lupus profundus., Material and Methods: Descriptive study, the study groups comprised 10 cases of LP and 10 cases of DLE, and a control. Skin samples of cases and controls were processed for immunohistochemistry and by TUNEL technique. The database and statistical analysis was performed (statistical test X(2)) SPSS (Chicago, IL, USA)., Results: Apoptotic features were broadly distributed along the skin biopsies in epidermal keratinocytes as well as at dermis. By immunohistochemistry the expression of Fas receptor and Fas-L was higher in the skin of lupus patients compared with controls. We also noted differences in Fas-L, -Fas, and -Bax proteins expression intensity in discoid lupus erythematosus patients in the epidermis, and hair follicles., Conclusions: Fas and Fas-L are expressed similarly in LP and DLE.