Acta Dermato-Venereologica 97-4 | Page 31
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SHORT COMMUNICATION
Congenital Ichthyosis and Recurrent Eczema Associated with a Novel ALOXE3 Mutation
Takuya TAKEICHI 1 , Yusuke OKUNO 2,3 , Chiyo SAITO 4 , Daiei KOJIMA 3 , Michihiro KONO 1 , Akimichi MORITA 4 , Kazumitsu
SUGIURA 5 and Masashi AKIYAMA 1 *
Departments of 1 Dermatology and 3 Pediatrics, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, 65 Tsurumai-cho, Showa-ku, Nagoya 466-8550,
2
Center for Advanced Medicine and Clinical Research, Nagoya University Hospital, Departments of Dermatology, 4 Nagoya City University,
Nagoya, and 5 Fujita Health University School of Medicine, Toyoake, Japan. *E-mail: [email protected]
Accepted Oct 12, 2016; Epub ahead of print Oct 14, 2016
The arachidonate lipoxygenase 3 (ALOXE3) gene is a
causative gene of lamellar ichthyosis, congenital ichthyo-
siform erythroderma (CIE) and pleomorphic ichthyosis
(PI, also called self-healing/self-improving collodion
baby) (1, 2). Oxygenation of the linoleate moiety of
ceramides catalysed by ALOXE3 constitutes an indis-
pensable step in the covalent linkage of ω-hydroxyl
ceramides to proteins of the cornified cell envelope and,
subsequently, for the formation of the corneocyte lipid
envelope. To date, 18 pathogenic mutations in ALOXE3
have been reported in autosomal recessive congenital
ichthyoses (ARCI) (www.hgmd.cf.ac.uk, as of Human
Gene Mutation Database professional 2016.6.27). They
comprise 5 missense, 5 nonsense, 4 splice-site, 3 small
deletion and 1 gross deletion mutations (Table SI 1 ) (1,
3–11). Recently, Hellström Pigg et al. (11) reported that
9 out of 132 (6.8%) ARCI patients in Scandinavia had
causative mutations in ALOXE3.
All forms of ARCI are associated with significantly im-
paired skin barrier function, mostly due to the inability of
mutated keratinocytes to produce and/or secrete the lipids
required for formation of the corneocyte lipid envelope
and the extracellular lipid layers in the stratum corneum.
Impaired function of ALOXE3 can cause significantly
defective skin barrier formation. Clinically, Wang et al.
(9) reported that decreased skin barrier function in CIE
caused by ALOXE3 mutation leads to cutaneous fungal in-
fections. We describe here a previously unreported muta-
https://www.medicaljournals.se/acta/content/abstract/10.2340/00015555-2549
1
tion in A LOXE3, p.Leu436Pro, in a Japanese female with
CIE complicated with recurrent eczema and depression.
CASE REPORT
The proband is a 38-year-old Japanese woman, the first child
born to first-cousin parents. She presented with generalized ery
thema and ichthyosis from one week after birth. She often showed
round, scaly, itchy erythema on the trunk and extremities. Physical
examination revealed multiple erythemas with fine whitish scales
on the extremities (Fig. 1 a and b). Recurrent fungal infections
accompanied by slight pain were seen in her skin and nails. She
had been diagnosed with depression and had been treated with oral
duloxetine hydrochloride, etizolam and lithium carbonate. A skin
biopsy specimen from the right forearm revealed mild acanthosis,
mild hyperkeratosis and slight spongiosis in the epidermis (Fig.
1c). Mild lymphocytic infiltration was seen around the vessels in
the upper dermis, suggesting overlapping of mild ichthyosis and
chronic eczema. She was treated with a heparinoid-containing
moisturizer and an oral anti-histamine, and the eruptions impro-
ved gradually.
Ethical approval was obtained and all research was performed
in accordance with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki.
Genomic DNA from the patient’s peripheral blood leukocytes
was used for whole-exome sequencing analysis, as described
previously (12). Analysis of whole-exome sequencing data re-
vealed the previously unreported homozygous missense mutation
c.1307T>C (p.Leu436Pro) in ALOXE3, which was confirmed
by Sanger sequencing (Fig. 1d). Her mother was shown to be a
heterozygous carrier of this mutation (Fig. 1d). Paternal DNA
was not available for analysis because the father had already
died. The mutation has not been described in the Human Genetic
Variation Database, which includes 1,208 exome-sequencing
data sets of healthy Japanese controls, nor in the ExAC database,
which includes 60,706 exome data (http://exac.broadinstitute.org/
as of 29/11/2015). T at nucleotide position 1,307 is the second
Fig. 1. Clinical and histopathological features of the proband with congenital ichthyosiform
erythroderma. (a, b) Multiple round erythemas with slight pigmentation and fine whitish scaling
are seen on (a) the legs and (b) the right ankle. (c) Haematoxylin-eosin staining shows partial
parakeratosis, moderate hyperkeratosis and mild spongiosis in the epidermis. Dermal lymphocytic
infiltration is observed. Scale bar: 100 μm (original magnification × 200). (d) Sanger sequencing
reveals a homozygous mutation of ALOXE3, c.1307T>C (p.Leu436Pro), GenBank NM_021628.2,
in the affected patient, and a heterozygous change in her mother.
doi: 10.2340/00015555-2549
Acta Derm Venereol 2017; 97: 532–533
This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC license. www.medicaljournals.se/acta
Journal Compilation © 2017 Acta Dermato-Venereologica.