Does psoriasis have a bacteriological cause?

[Caroline]

I was pointed to this article. Maybe weird... but.. logical.
In Germany they are working on a kind of vaccination treatment for psoriasis, in a way that your own body takes care of the bacteriological cause of psoriasis.

Cell-wall-deficient bacteria: a major etiological factor for psoriasis?

Background Psoriasis is a common inflammatory skin disease, yet knowledge of the factors that may induce, trigger, or exacerbate psoriasis is not fully delineated. Recent advances have improved our understanding of the link between psoriasis and cell-wall-deficient bacteria (CWDB) infections. In the present study we assessed the prevalence of CWDB infection in patients with psoriasis.
Methods The carriage rate of CWDB in the tonsil or pharynx of psoriasis patients, chronic tonsillitis patients and controls were investigated using hypertonic medium. Psoriasis patients with CWDB were randomly assigned to two groups and respectively treated with antibiotics or systemic therapy without antibiotic. Human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from psoriasis patients, chronic tonsillitis patients and control subjects were stimulated with bacteria antigens and extra-cellular levels of interferon-γ (IFN-γ) and interleukin (IL)-10 were measured in the supernatants using the ELISA technique, in vitro. Meanwhile, the proliferation ability of PBMC to respond to bacteria antigens was detected by MTT assay.
Results CWDB were isolated from 74.2% of psoriasis patients, 23.5% of chronic tonsillitis patients and only 6.3% of controls. Antibiotic therapy was appropriate for approximately 80% of psoriasis patients with CWDB infection, and in only 8.9% psoriasis patients CWDB infection was detected after antibiotic therapy. Meanwhile, our study showed that CWDB and wide-type bacteria did remarkably enhance the production of IFN-γ, in vitro, and PBMC proliferation.
Conclusion CWDB infection may be a virtual triggering factor in psoriasis by regulating T-cell activation.

Chinese Medical Journal 2009;122(24):3011-3016

[Fred]

It's interesting what they keep finding, I have found a History of Research into Cell Wall Deficient Bacteria.

Source: chronicillnessrecovery.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=117&Itemid=22

[Caroline]

and it goes further.....  a publication from the year 2010

Munz OH, Sela S, Baker BS, Griffiths CE, Powles AV, Fry L.
Source

Department of Food Sciences, The Volcani Institute, Beth Dagan, Israel.
Abstract

Evidence exists that microorganisms, particularly in the throat and skin, play a role in the pathogenesis of psoriasis. The aim of this study was to investigate whether evidence for the presence of bacteria, including Streptococcus pyogenes, can be demonstrated in the peripheral blood of patients with guttate and/or chronic plaque psoriasis. Peripheral blood samples from 20 patients with psoriasis, seven guttate, six chronic plaque and seven chronic plaque with associated guttate flare and from 16 control subjects were studied for the presence of bacteria by PCR using universal 16S ribosomal DNA primers and specific primers for S. pyogenes. Sequence analysis of amplified 16S rRNA sequences was used to determine taxonomic identity. Ribosomal bacterial DNA was detected in the blood of all 20 patients with psoriasis, but in none of the controls. Streptococci were detected in six of seven patients with guttate psoriasis, but none had staphylococci. In contrast, staphylococci were identified in 9 of 13 patients with chronic plaque psoriasis, whilst only 2 demonstrated streptococci. In three psoriasis patients, species other than streptococci and staphylococci were identified.
These findings suggest that psoriasis is associated with bacteraemia, with distinct taxonomic groups present in guttate and chronic plaque psoriatic subtypes. The causes of the bacteraemia and its implications in psoriasis have yet to be determined.

Source: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub med/20607546

[Hanna]

I have often thought it was linked, maybe this is why some people find tea tree oil and lavender oil a natural psoriasis beating treatment (these oils are natural anti-bacterial)

Also I've had a cold recently which upset my throat a bit....my skin played up straight away so feel like I've taken some steps back with my body clearing itself!!!

[Caroline]

There is more to come Hanna.
The Germans are experimenting with very good success and there is also a Dutch treatment. But we have to be a little careful for the flying pigs, see the post of Fred on the money that is involved in the industry.