Energy metabolism and the skin

Physiological skin oxygen levels: An important criterion for skin cell functionality and therapeutic approaches

The skin is made up of different layers with various gradients, which maintain a complex microenvironment, particularly in terms of oxygen levels. However, all types of skin cells are cultured in conventional incubators that do not reproduce physiological oxygen levels. Instead, they are cultured at atmospheric oxygen levels, a condition that is far removed from physiology and may lead to the generation of free radicals known to induce skin ageing. This review aims to summarize the current literature on the effect of physiological oxygen levels on skin cells, highlight the shortcomings of current in vitro models, and demonstrate the importance of respecting skin oxygen levels. We begin by clarifying the terminology used about oxygen levels and describe the specific distribution of oxygen in the skin. We review and discuss how skin cells adapt their oxygen consumption and metabolism to oxygen levels environment, as well as the changes that are induced, particularly, their redox state, life cycle and functions. We examine the effects of oxygen on both simple culture models and more complex reconstructed skin models. Finally, we present the implications of oxygen modulation for a more therapeutic approach.

Skin Aging and the Upcoming Role of Ferroptosis in Geroscience

The skin is considered the most important organ system in mammals, and as the population ages, it is important to consider skin aging and anti-aging therapeutic strategies. Exposure of the skin to various insults induces significant changes throughout our lives, differentiating the skin of a young adult from that of an older adult. These changes are caused by a combination of intrinsic and extrinsic aging. We report the interactions between skin aging and its metabolism, showing that the network is due to several factors. For example, iron is an important nutrient for humans, but its level increases with aging, inducing deleterious effects on cellular functions. Recently, it was discovered that ferroptosis, or iron-dependent cell death, is linked to aging and skin diseases. The pursuit of new molecular targets for ferroptosis has recently attracted attention. Prevention of ferroptosis is an effective therapeutic strategy for the treatment of diseases, especially in old age. However, the pathological and biological mechanisms underlying ferroptosis are still not fully understood, especially in skin diseases such as melanoma and autoimmune diseases. Only a few basic studies on regulated cell death exist, and the challenge is to turn the studies into clinical applications.

Research Progress in Skin Aging, Metabolism, and Related Products

In recent years, skin aging has received increasing attention. Many factors affect skin aging, and research has shown that metabolism plays a vital role in skin aging, but there needs to be a more systematic review. This article reviews the interaction between skin metabolism and aging from the perspectives of glucose, protein, and lipid metabolism and explores relevant strategies for skin metabolism regulation. We found that skin aging affects the metabolism of three major substances, which are glucose, protein, and lipids, and the metabolism of the three major substances in the skin also affects the process of skin aging. Some drugs or compounds can regulate the metabolic disorders mentioned above to exert anti-aging effects. Currently, there are a variety of products, but most of them focus on improving skin collagen levels. Skin aging is closely related to metabolism, and they interact with each other. Regulating specific metabolic disorders in the skin is an important anti-aging strategy. Research and development have focused on improving collagen levels, while the regulation of other skin glycosylation and lipid disorders including key membrane or cytoskeleton proteins is relatively rare. Further research and development are expected.

Oxygen deprivation inhibits basal keratinocyte proliferation in a model of human skin and induces regio-specific changes in the distribution of epidermal adherens junction proteins, aquaporin-3, and glycogen

It is generally accepted that hypoxia and recovery from oxygen deprivation contribute to the breakdown and ulceration of human skin. The effects of these stresses on proliferation, differentiation and expression of cell-cell adhesion molecules were investigated for the first time in an organotypic model of human skin. Fully stratified tissues were exposed to a time course of oxygen deprivation and subsequent reoxygenation. Regional changes in keratinocyte morphology, glycogen stores and cellular junctions were observed, with more differentiated layers of the epidermis exhibiting the first evidence of oxygen deprivation. Cellular swelling within the granular layer was concurrent with aquaporin-3 depletion. The keratinocyte adherens junction proteins E-cadherin and beta-catenin were dramatically decreased in a regio-specific manner throughout the epidermis following oxygen deprivation. In contrast, P-cadherin and the desmosomal proteins desmoplakin and desmoglein-1 were refractory to oxygen deprivation. Relative to normoxic controls, hypoxic tissues exhibited increased mRNA levels of the transcriptional repressor Slug; however, mRNA levels of the related transcriptional factor Snail were unaffected. All cellular and molecular changes were reversible upon reoxygenation. These results show that oxygen deprivation and reoxygenation exert differential effects on epidermal adhesion proteins and suggest a novel role for cadherins, beta-catenin, and Slug in hypoxia-induced junctional changes occurring in stratified squamous epithelium.

Hepatic glucose uptake, gluconeogenesis and the regulation of glycogen synthesis

Hepatic glycogen is replenished during the absorptive period postprandially. This repletion is prompted partly by an increased hepatic uptake of glucose by the liver, partly by metabolite and hormonal signals in the portal vein, and partly by an increased gluconeogenic flux to glycogen (glyconeogenesis). There is some evidence that the direct formation of glycogen from glucose and that formed by gluconeogenic pathways is linked. This includes: (i) the inhibition of all glycogen synthesis, in vivo, when gluconeogenic flux is blocked by inhibitors; (ii) a dual relationship between glucose concentrations, lactate uptake by the liver and glycogen synthesis (by both pathways) which indicates that glucose sets the maximal rates of glycogen synthesis while lactate uptake determines the actual flux rate to glycogen; (iii) the decrease of both gluconeogenesis and glycogen synthesis by the biguanide, metformin; and (iv) correlations between increased gluconeogenesis and liver glycogen in obese patients and animal models. The degree to which the liver extracts portal glucose is not entirely agreed upon although a preponderance of evidence points to about a 5% extraction rate, following meals, which is dependent on a stimulation of glucokinase. This enzyme may be linked to the expression of other enzymes in the gluconeogenic pathway. Perivenous cells in the liver may induce additional gluconeogenesis in the periportal cells by increasing glycolytically produced lactate. A number of potential mechanisms therefore exist which could link glycogen synthesis from glucose and gluconeogenic substrate.

Glucose metabolism in chronic diabetic foot ulcers measured in vivo using microdialysis

Ten subjects with diabetes mellitus and unilateral chronic foot ulcer were investigated. Local tissue concentrations of glucose and lactate were measured using the microdialysis method at a distance of 0.5-1 cm from the edge of the ulcer and in normal skin in the contralateral foot. Subcutaneous blood flow in the area investigated was measured using the 133Xewashout technique. The interstitial glucose concentration in the ulcer was found to be lower than in intact skin (8.0 +/- 1.0 mmol l-1 vs. 8.5 +/- 1.1 mmol l-1) (P < 0.02), and the interstitial lactate concentration was higher in the ulcer than in intact skin (3.2 +/- 0.2 mmol l-1 vs. 2.1 +/- 0.3 mmol l-1) (P < 0.01). The subcutaneous blood flow was on average 40% higher in the ulcer than in the intact skin. The calculated local glucose uptake and lactate outputs were twofold higher in the ulcer than in the intact skin. However, the molar ratio between lactate output and glucose uptake was approximately two, both in the ulcer and in the intact skin, indicating that the glucose metabolism was qualitatively the same in the two regions.

Immunohistochemical demonstration of transferrin and transferrin receptor in mammalian integument

The present study demonstrates the distribution of transferrin and the transferrin receptor in the integument of eleven wild mammalian species using immunohistochemical methods. Both substances were regularly found in or near the peripheral cells of the sebaceous glands, especially of dense-haired animals. The transferrin receptor was also detectable in the epidermis, the secretory portion of tubular apocrine glands, and the outer epithelium of primary hair follicles. Transferrin as well as the transferrin receptor reacted strongly in macrophages of the papillary dermis only in the common seal. The results obtained are discussed with regard to possible biological functions in the skin of the substances demonstrated.

Effect of tactile stimulation on serum lactate in the newborn rat

Maturation of the CNS in neonatal animals is dependent upon both sensory input and the constant availability of metabolic fuel. Previous reports indicate that the preferred metabolic substrate for the developing rat brain is lactate. In this study, we used the neonatal Sprague-Dawley rat to investigate a possible interactive role between touch and the regulation of serum lactate. Two hundred and fifty rats (postnatal d 0-7) were exposed to a standard tactile stimulation (TS) regimen to mimic nonspecific maternal stimulation. This regimen consisted of stroking the dorsum with a soft camel hair brush for 30 s every minute for 10 min. Serum lactate and glucose levels were measured after TS. In newborn (d 0) rats, lactate levels were increased by 207% in stroked pups versus controls. This elevation of serum lactate persisted for 30 min after cessation of TS. On d 7, TS increased lactate only 11%. Glucose levels were unaffected at all ages. In neonatal pups, pretreatment with pentobarbital blocked the effect of TS, whereas epidermal growth factor evoked a synergistic response. Capsaicin pretreatment had no effect. Mixed arteriovenous blood gases revealed a mild increase in pH and a decrease in Pco2 after TS. We conclude that TS in newborn rats is a regulator of circulating lactate. This response is maximal in the immediate postnatal period and wanes over the 1st wk of life. We speculate that the transduction of sensory signals by the skin is a mechanism regulating the availability of cerebral energy substrates in the newborn mammal.

Inactivation of enzymes of the glutathione antioxidant system by treatment of cultured human keratinocytes with peroxides

Either metal ions, H2O2, t-butyl hydroperoxide (tBHP), or cumene hydroperoxide (CHP) was added to the medium of cultured human keratinocytes, and the activities of key peroxide-metabolizing enzymes were examined in a sonicated cell supernatant from the treated cells. 200 microM Fe++ +200 microM Fe was without effect on any enzyme activity. 700 microM CHP or tBHP decreased glutathione (GSH) peroxidase activity by 90% after 5 h and by 100% at 20 h, even if the CHP or tBHP was removed from the media after 90 min. H2O2 at 700 microM caused a brief 17% decrease in activity, which was followed by complete recovery. GSH peroxidase was found to be rapidly inactivated in vitro by CHP, but the enzyme was also inactivated at 37 degrees C even in the absence of CHP. GSH prevented both types of inactivation. Consistent with this in vitro data, in vivo depletion of the GSH pool with buthionine sulfoximine led to lower levels of GSH peroxidase and increased sensitivity to peroxide-induced inactivation. Neither GSH reductase nor GSH S-transferase were inactivated by any treatment although CHP did cause a small increase in the activity of the latter, which was not due to induction. The activity of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase was decreased 50% following treatment for 5 h with 700 microM CHP or tBHP, whereas H2O2 treatment caused a brief 15% decline, followed by recovery. The effects of peroxides were not altered by changing the concentration of Ca++ in the media. Catalase was unaffected by concentrations of peroxide up to 700 microM. Inhibition of catalase with aminotriazole slightly enhanced the toxicity of 700 microns H2O2. In summary, organic hydroperoxides at relatively low concentrations inactive key enzymes of the glutathione pathway, but hydrogen peroxide does not.

Substrates and the regulation of hepatic glycogen metabolism

Glycogen metabolism is a complex process which depends on the metabolic circumstances and the hormonal milieu. In this overview an intriguing new possibility has been emphasized--the possible central role of lactate in coordinating, with glucose, the net synthesis of glycogen. Since lactate changes acutely under many physiological circumstances, it would be a logical candidate for a signal which communicates to the liver the metabolic states of the periphery. It would then acutely determine the synthetic rate of glycogen synthesis within the range determined by the glucose concentrations which in turn could be said to reflect the nutritional state of the system. Interestingly, after oral glucose loading, portal glucose levels would be about 25% higher (Radziuk et al., 1978) relative to arterial. As seen from Figs 8 and 9 however the glycogen synthetic rate appears very sensitive to glucose (at a given lactate uptake). Everything else being assumed equal therefore, more glycogen would be synthesized than during intravenous loading with an equivalent peripheral concentration. This is indeed the case (Shulman and Rossetti, 1989). On the other hand, during equivalent loads, peripheral glucose levels are higher and the same quantity of glycogen is synthesized (Radziuk, 1989a, 1989b). If lactate is typical of other glucogenic substrates, then it is also logical that mixed meals with higher levels of portal substrate would maximize glycogen synthetic rates. Similarly, in diabetes where hyperglycemia and hyperlactatemia prevail, gluconeogenesis plays a predominant role in glycogen synthesis (Giaccari and Rossetti, 1992).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)