Increased gliadin antibodies in dermatitis herpetiformis and pemphigoid

The mean titres of serum IgG and IgA gliadin antibodies were significantly increased in thirty-four patients with bullous pemphigoid, and in twenty-three patients with dermatitis herpetiformis, compared with twenty-four healthy controls. The patients with pemphigoid also had increased IgG and IgA gliadin antibodies compared with nine patients with pemphigus. The reason for the high titres of gliadin antibodies in pemphigoid is obscure. These patients may have increased intestinal permeability (suggested by the presence of beta-lactoglobulin antibodies in some patients). Alternatively gliadin may somehow precipitate the autoimmune process.