01288nas a2200217   4500000000100000008004100001260001300042653002900055653002200084653002100106653001100127653001200138100001500150700001600165700001500181245008700196300000900283490000700292520075700299022001401056       1984                            d  c1984 Mar10aAntigen-Antibody Complex10aConnective Tissue10aErythema Nodosum10aHumans10aleprosy1 aRidley M J1 aHeather C J1 aRidley D S00aErythema nodosum leprosum (ENL). Ultrastructure of the connective tissue response.  a61-50 v523 a<p>In ENL lesions of the type associated with severe damage to the connective tissue of the dermis, large quantities of bacterial debris were demonstrated by electron microscopy, although not by light microscopy. The debris, in an advanced stage of degeneration, was present in the phagosomes of decrepit macrophages, in the extracellular compartment and, in particular, bound to degenerate collagen and elastic where immunoglobulin, complement, and inflammatory mediators had been demonstrated previously. It is suggested that the complexing of mycobacterial antigen is a major factor in the causation of connective tissue damage, as well as other aspects of ENL. The reason why connective tissue involvement is so variable has not been explained.</p>  a0148-916X