The American journal of pathology
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Kaposi's sarcoma is a neoplasm that develops as multifocal lesions, often involving the skin, characterized by a complex histologic picture including numerous vascular spaces, perivascular and interstitial spindle-shaped cells, and extravasated erythrocytes, lymphocytes, and plasma cells. Using an antibody against factor XIIIa, which identifies dermal dendrocytes, numerous factor XIIIa-positive dermal dendrocytes were detected among the spindle-shaped cells in 12 acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS)-associated, and five non-AIDS-associated Kaposi's sarcoma lesions. The factor XIIIa-positive dermal dendrocytes were also increased in histologic simulators of Kaposi's sarcoma such as dermatofibroma, angiomatoid malignant fibrous histiocytoma, granuloma annulare, and early wound healing, but were absent in keloids. ⋯ Apparently a diverse array of stimuli, including human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) infection and trauma, can stimulate the accumulation of factor XIIIa expressing dermal dendrocytes in the skin. These cells can then participate in different stages of a variety of cutaneous alterations including Kaposi's sarcoma, dermatofibroma, granuloma annulare, and early wound healing. Thus, the factor XIIIa-positive dermal dendrocyte is a common cellular denominator among diverse clinical entities that share some histologic features.