Acantholysis
Encyclopedia
Acantholysis is the loss of intercellular connections
Cell junction
A cell junction is a type of structure that exists within the tissue of a some multicellular organism . Cell junctions consist of protein complexes and provide contact between neighbouring cells or between a cell and the extracellular matrix...

, such as desmosomes, resulting in loss of cohesion between keratinocyte
Keratinocyte
Keratinocytes are the predominant cell type in the epidermis, the outermost layer of the human skin, constituting 95% of the cells found there. Those keratinocytes found in the basal layer of the skin are sometimes referred to as "basal cells" or "basal keratinocytes"...

s, seen in diseases such as pemphigus vulgaris
Pemphigus vulgaris
Pemphigus vulgaris is a chronic blistering skin disease with skin lesions that are rarely pruritic, but which are often painful.-Pathophysiology:...

. It is absent in bullous pemphigoid
Bullous pemphigoid
Bullous pemphigoid, also referred to as BP, is an acute or chronic autoimmune skin disease, involving the formation of blisters, more appropriately known as bullae, at the space between the skin layers epidermis and dermis.-Signs and symptoms:...

, making it useful for differential diagnosis
Differential diagnosis
A differential diagnosis is a systematic diagnostic method used to identify the presence of an entity where multiple alternatives are possible , and may also refer to any of the included candidate alternatives A differential diagnosis (sometimes abbreviated DDx, ddx, DD, D/Dx, or ΔΔ) is a...

.

This histological
Histology
Histology is the study of the microscopic anatomy of cells and tissues of plants and animals. It is performed by examining cells and tissues commonly by sectioning and staining; followed by examination under a light microscope or electron microscope...

 feature is also seen in herpes simplex infections (HSV 1 and 2).
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