Systemic sclerosis: the susceptible host (genetics and environment)

Although environmental triggers for systemic sclerosis (scleroderma) have yet to be firmly established, the emerging data, including familial aggregation studies, suggest that multiple genes interact to influence host susceptibility to systemic sclerosis and its clinical presentation. This article reviews the available literature on the genetics of systemic sclerosis and the recent developments in the cellular pathways to fibrosis relevant to systemic sclerosis.