Research Paper Volume 8, Issue 7 pp 1457—1469
Skin aging: are adipocytes the next target?
- 1 Scientific Department, Wellcomet GmbH, Karlsruhe, Germany
- 2 Touchstone Diabetes Center, Departments of Internal Medicine and Cell Biology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
Received: April 4, 2016 Accepted: July 7, 2016 Published: July 17, 2016
https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.100999How to Cite
Abstract
Dermal white adipose tissue (dWAT) is increasingly appreciated as a special fat depot. The adipocytes in this depot exert a variety of unique effects on their surrounding cells and can undergo massive phenotypic changes. Significant modulation of dWAT content can be observed both in intrinsically and extrinsically aged skin. Specifically, skin that has been chronically photo-damaged displays a reduction of the dWAT volume, caused by the replacement of adipocytes by fibrotic structures. This is likely to be caused by the recently uncovered process described as “adipocyte-myofibroblast transition” (AMT). In addition, contributions of dermal adipocytes to the skin aging processes are also indirectly supported by spatial correlations between the prevalence of hypertrophic scarring and the appearance of signs of skin aging in different ethnic groups. These observations could elevate dermal adipocytes to prime targets in strategies aimed at counteracting skin aging.
Abbreviations
ADSC: adipose derived stem cells; AMT: adipocyte-myofibroblast transition; CsA: cyclosporine A; dWAT: dermal white adipose tissue; HA: hyaluronan; HF: hair follicle; IR: infrared radiation; PPARγ: peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ; ROS: reactive oxygen species; sWAT: subcutaneous white adipose tissue; UVR: UV radiation; VDR: vitamin D receptor.