A canine case of discoid lupus erythematosus with circulating autoantibody

A nine-year-old Shetland sheepdog was diagnosed as discoid lupus erythematosus by clinical features, histopathologic findings, positive direct immunofluorescence, negative antinuclear antigen test and the absence of multisystemic diseases. The indirect immunofluorescence test of this patient dog with the salt split skin showed the deposition at the bottom of the cleft at basement membrane zone (BMZ). Western immunoblotting revealed the 120 kDa and the 85 kDa proteins targeted by the autoantibody. These proteins did not correspond with the known BMZ component.