Mutations in the KRT5 gene have been reported since the early 1990s as the cause of epidermolysis bullosa simplex (EBS).9 Keratin 5, a type II keratin protein, partners with the type I keratin 14 and this keratin pair is predominantly expressed within the basal cells of the epidermis where blistering in EBS occurs. This evidence concerns the gene KRT5 and epidermolysis bullosa simplex.