The transcriptome of hand eczema assessed by tape stripping

• Published in: Contact dermatitis Vol. 86; no. 2; pp. 71 - 79
• Main Authors: Sølberg, Julie B. K., Quaade, Anna S., Jacobsen, Stine B., Andersen, Jeppe D., Kampmann, Marie‐Louise, Morling, Niels, Litman, Thomas, Thyssen, Jacob P., Johansen, Jeanne D.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.02.2022; Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Atopic dermatitis; atopic hand eczema; Biomarkers; Biomarkers - metabolism; Biopsy; Contact dermatitis; Dermatitis; Dermatitis, Allergic Contact - diagnosis; Dermatitis, Allergic Contact - genetics; Dermatitis, Atopic - diagnosis; Dermatitis, Atopic - genetics; Dermatitis, Irritant - diagnosis; Dermatitis, Irritant - genetics; Diagnosis, Differential; Down-Regulation; Eczema; Female; Gene expression; Hand Dermatoses - diagnosis; Hand Dermatoses - genetics; Hand Dermatoses - immunology; Humans; Interleukin-8 - metabolism; Investigations; Male; Middle Aged; Patients; Receptor, EphA1 - metabolism; Skin; Skin - immunology; Skin - metabolism; Specimen Handling - methods; subtypes of hand eczema; Surgical Tape; tape stripping; Transcriptome; Transcriptomes; transcriptomics; Whole Exome Sequencing; contact dermatitis; transcriptomics; tape stripping; subtypes of hand eczema; atopic hand eczema
• ISSN: 0105-1873; 1600-0536
• DOI: 10.1111/cod.14015

Background No biomarkers have been identified that can classify subtypes of hand eczema (HE). Although skin biopsies represent the gold standard for investigations of the skin, the invasive technique is not favorable when investigating skin from sensitive areas. Recent advances in the use of skin‐tape strips for molecular investigations enable noninvasive investigations of HE. Objective By using whole transcriptome sequencing (WTS), the molecular profile of HE according to different localizations on the hands, etiologies, and clinical/morphological subtypes was investigated. Methods Thirty adult, Danish HE patients, 12 with and 18 without concurrent atopic dermatitis (AD), as well as 16 controls were included. Tape strip samples were collected from lesional, nonlesional, and healthy skin. Total RNA was extracted and WTS was performed. Results The largest molecular difference of HE patients with and without AD was found in nonlesional skin areas and included a downregulation of CXCL8 for HE patients without AD. Differences between allergic and irritant contact dermatitis included epidermal biomarkers such as EPHA1. Conclusion Skin tape strip samples could be used to assess the gene expression profile of HE on different localizations of the hands. The skin tape strip method identified new molecular markers that showed promising result for the identification of HE subtypes. Whole transcriptome sequencing can be performed on RNA from tape strips from different localizations on the hands, from both hand eczema (HE) patients and healthy controls. The transcriptomic difference between HE with and without atopic dermatitis (AD) can be assessed by tape stripping and includes an increase of inflammatory markers for HE patients with AD. Skin tape strip samples identify transcriptomic differences between irritant and allergic contact dermatitis on the hands.