[Autoimmune reactions in psoriasis : Spotlight].

Background: Psoriasis is a human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-associated T‑cell-mediated disorder.
Objectives: The role of the main psoriasis risk allele HLA-C*06:02 in disease manifestation and the mechanisms which activate the pathogenic T‑cell response in the skin of psoriasis patients remained elusive.
Materials and Methods: Key to the immune pathogenesis of psoriasis was the analysis of the specificity of the infiltrating lesional psoriatic CD8(+) T cells
Results and Conclusion: Analyses of the lesional psoriatic T‑cell reactivity demonstrate that psoriasis is an autoimmune disease. It is based on an autoimmune response against melanocytes which is preferentially mediated by HLA-C*06:02 through autoantigen presentation. Here we discuss the mechanisms of this autoimmune response in the context of the polygenic psoriatic predisposition.