Morphological Changes Associated with Aging Age Spots and the Microinflammatory Model of Skin Aging

摘要

Affymetrix gene-expression analysis was performed onmRNAs from involved and noninvolved skin biopsies from three vol-unteers with Lentigo senilis. Of the 42,000 transcripts scanned, 17 weredownregulated (<1.4 times below the control level) and 23 were up-regulated (>1.9 times above the control level). A serine peptidase genewas downregulated in keeping with the suggestion that age spots areassociated with impaired melanin degradation. Three genes involved inthe keratinization and synthesis and the organization of fibers in thebasement membrane were downregulated, two metalloproteinase geneswere upregulated, as were six genes associated with the inflammatory re-sponse, in keeping with the postulate that the visible aspects of aged skinare causally linked with a microinflammatory response. The regulationof five genes associated with the Wnt family was altered. Antiapoptoticgenes were downregulated, and six genes associated with transmembranetransport were upregulated.