B-cell depletion therapy in patients with diffuse systemic sclerosis associates with a significant decrease in PDGFR expression and activation in spindle-like cells in the skin

Introduction Recently, several studies assessing the clinical efficacy of rituximab (RTX) in systemic sclerosis (SSc) have reported encouraging results. We aimed at exploring whether RTX exerts its beneficial effects on fibrosis through attenuation of platelet-derived growth factor receptor (PDGFR) pathway activation.