Bay Biosciences provides high quality, clinical grade bio-samples, skin biopsy tissue samples, FFPE tissue blocks, sera (serum), plasma and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) biofluid samples from patients diagnosed with pemphigus foliaceus (PF).

Moreover, the serum, plasma and PBMCs are processed from patient’s peripheral whole-blood using customized processing protocols.

Furthermore, the bio-specimens are collected from PF patients and provided to a pharmaceutical customer for research, development and drug discovery.

In addition, detailed clinical annotations, associated with the Pemphigus Foliaceus (PF) patient’s specimens is provided to a valued customer for drug discovery, development and research. 

Pemphigus Foliaceus Overview

Pemphigus foliaceus (PF) causes blisters, cuts, and crusty spots on the skin. The sores can be painful and unattractive, but PF is a fairly benign medical condition that does not typically cause other health problems.

In fact, PF is a rare, potentially life-threatening, autoimmune blistering disease (bullous disorder) of the skin.

Specifically, Pemphigus Foliaceus causes a characteristic inflammatory attack at the sub-corneal layer of the epidermis, which results in skin lesions that are scaly or crusted erosions with an erythematous (red) base.

Moreover, Pemphigus Foliaceus presents blistering lesions on otherwise healthy-looking skin. In particular, blisters tend to form when the skin is rubbed (Nikolsky’s sign). Additionally, sun exposure sometimes provokes Pemphigus Foliaceus. Furthermore, Pemphigus Foliaceus affects people of all races, age, and sex.

Notably, it affects patients most commonly between the ages of 50-60 years.

Autoimmune Disorder

In essence**, Pemphigus Foliaceus is an autoimmune disorder, which means that an individual’s immune system starts reacting against his or her own body. Consequently, the immune system produces antibodies that attack viruses and harmful bacteria to keep us healthy.

However, in patients suffering from Pemphigus Foliaceus (PF), the immune system mistakenly attacks the cells in the epidermis, which is the top layer of the skin and the mucous membranes.

As a result, the immune system produces antibodies against proteins in the skin known as desmogleins. Ultimately, these proteins form the glue that keeps skin cells attached and the skin intact.

Desmoglein-1

When desmogleins attack, skin cells separate from each other; consequently, fluid collects between the layers of the skin, forming blisters that do not heal. Furthermore, the building block cells of the epidermis are called keratinocytes. These cells are cemented together at special sticky spots known as desmosomes.

In Pemphigus Foliaceus, autoantibodies bind to a protein called Desmoglein-1, which is found in desmosomes in the keratinocytes near the top of the epidermis. As a result, the surface keratinocytes separate from each other, and fluid replaces them, thereby forming the blister.

Moreover, because the blisters are very close to the surface of the skin, they rupture easily. In some cases, these blisters can cover a large area of the skin. In most cases, the autoantibodies are immunoglobulin type G (IgG); however, in IgA Pemphigus, the autoantibodies are type A (IgA).

Symptoms of Pemphigus Foliaceus

Unlike other forms of pemphigus, PF symptoms typically do not involve the mucous membranes, such as the mouth or eyes.

In addition, symptoms of PF include:

  • Firstly, small fluid-filled skin blisters that typically begin on the face, scalp, or trunk.
  • Furthermore, ruptured blisters that cause sores, pockets, or scars in the skin.
  • Moreover, scaly, inflamed, painful patches on the skin. Specifically, these patches occur after blisters burst. Interestingly, some people may only notice symptoms after the blisters burst.
  • Additionally, burning, pain, and itching at the site of the blisters.
  • Lastly, chronic skin infections due to ruptured and irritated blisters.

Although the blisters and lesions caused by PF can look alarming, they do not indicate the presence of another condition. In fact, on its own, pemphigus is not life-threatening. However, severe blistering leaves the skin vulnerable to serious infections.

Consequently, these infections can become life-threatening if left untreated.

The blisters and lesions caused by PF can look alarming, but they do not indicate the presence of another condition. On its own, pemphigus is not life-threatening. However, severe blistering leaves the skin vulnerable to serious infections. These infections can become life-threatening if left untreated.

Skin Infections

Signs of a skin infection include:

  • Exhaustion
  • Fever
  • Intense pain at the site of a blister
  • Nausea
  • Pus at a skin wound
  • Red streaks out of a wound or blister

Types of Pemphigus Foliaceus

  • Pemphigus Erythematosus
  • Pemphigus Herpetiformis
  • Endemic Pemphigus Foliaceus
  • IgA Pemphigus Foliaceus
  • Paraneoplastic Pemphigus Foliaceus
  • Drug-Induced Pemphigus Foliaceus

Diagnosis

Diagnosis generally requires a skin biopsy, which shows typical features of rounded-up separated keratinocytes (called acantholytic cells) within the blisters in the upper layers of the epidermis. Moreover, direct immunofluorescence staining of the skin sections confirms Pemphigus Foliaceus (PF) to reveal antibodies. Consequently, in some cases, an indirect immunofluorescence blood test can detect circulating antibodies.

Biospecimens

biospecimens

Bay Biosciences is a global leader in providing researchers with high quality, clinical grade, fully characterized human tissue samples, bio-specimens, and human bio-fluid collections.

Moreover, human biospecimens are available including tumor tissue, serum, plasma and PBMC samples from most other therapeutic areas.

Furthermore, Bay Biosciences maintains and manages its own biorepository, the human tissue bank (biobank) consisting of thousands of diseased samples (specimens) and likewise normal healthy donors for controls. Additionally, available in all formats and types.

In fact, our biobank procures and stores fully consented, de-identified and institutional review boards (IRB) approved human tissue samples, human biofluids such as serum samples, plasma samples from various diseases and matched controls.

Also, all our human tissue collections, human biospecimens and human biofluids are provided with detailed, samples associated patient’s clinical data.

In fact, this critical patient’s clinical data includes information relating to their past and current disease, treatment history, lifestyle choices, biomarkers, and genetic information.

Additionally, researchers find the patient’s data associated with the human biospecimens extremely valuable and use it to help identify new effective treatments (drug discovery & development) in oncology, as well as in other therapeutic areas and diseases.

Bay Biosciences banks wide variety of human tissue samples and human biological samples, including fresh frozen human biospecimens cryogenically preserved at – 80°C.

For example fresh frozen tissue samples, tumor tissue samples, formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE), tissue slides, with matching human bio-fluids, whole blood and blood-derived products such as human serum, human plasma and human PBMCs.

Bay Biosciences is a global leader in collecting and providing human tissue samples according to the specified requirements and customized, tailor-made collection protocols.

Please contact us anytime to discuss your special research projects and customized human tissue sample requirements.

Types of Biospecimens

Bay Biosciences provides human tissue samples (human specimens) and human biofluids from diseased and normal healthy donors which includes:

Moreover, we can also procure most human biospecimens and human biofluids, special collections and requests for human samples that are difficult to find. All our human tissue samples and human biofluids are procured through IRB-approved clinical protocols and procedures.

In addition to the standard processing protocols, Bay Biosciences can also provide human biofluids such as  human plasma, human serum, and human PBMCs bio-fluid samples using custom processing protocols; you buy donor-specific collections in higher volumes and specified sample aliquots from us.

Bay Biosciences also provides human biospecimens from normal healthy donors; volunteers, for controls and clinical research, Contact us Now.