Production of cytokines by epithelial tissues. A new model for cutaneous inflammation.

The pathophysiological processes responsible for the histological and clinical appearance of skin diseases characterized by inflammatory infiltrates of dermis and epidermis remain obscure. The recent explosion of knowledge about cytokines with immune and inflammatory activities, as well as the identification of many of these cytokines as products of activated keratinocytes, fibroblasts, and endothelial cells, lends a novel and exciting perspective on these diseases. In this article, paradigms that incorporate what is known about epidermal and dermal cell cytokine production and the effects of these cytokines on mature immune and inflammatory cells are discussed.