The aberrant intraepithelial T cells in refractory coeliac disease show epidermotropism

In RCD-I, IELs are polyclonal and show a normal phenotype, while in RCD-II, IELs are monoclonal and immunophenotypically aberrant, expressing cytoplasmic CD3[straight epsilon] but not surface CD3[straight epsilon], CD8 and T cell receptor (TCR) antigens. 1-3 Coeliac disease mainly causes enteropathy of the small intestine, but can involve the entire gastrointestinal tract. While dermatitis herpetiformis is a well-recognised clinical presentation in patients with coeliac disease, there are few other cutaneous manifestations, with oral mucosal lesions, alopecia areata and vitiligo possibly occurring at greater frequency than the normal population. [...]there is little information regarding the histological and immunological features of the lymphoid infiltrate in the skin lesion of patients with coeliac disease.