Alleviation of Ultraviolet B-Induced Photoaging by 7-MEGATM 500 in Hairless Mouse Skin

7-MEGA™ inhibits adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 adipocytes and suppresses obesity in high-fat-diet-induced obese C57BL/6 mice

BACKGROUND

Overweight, often known as obesity, is the abnormal and excessive accumulation of fat that exposes the health of a person at risk by increasing the likelihood that they may experience many chronic conditions. Consequently, obesity has become a global health threat, presenting serious health issues, and attracting a lot of attention in the healthcare profession and the scientific community.

METHOD

This study aims to explore the anti-adipogenic properties of 7-MEGA™ in an attempt to address obesity, using both in vitro and in vivo research. The effects of 7MEGA™ at three distinct concentrations were investigated in obese mice who were given a high-fat diet (HFD) and 3T3-L1 adipocytes.

RESULTS

7MEGA™ decreased the total fat mass, overall body weight, and the perirenal and subcutaneous white adipose tissue (PWAT and SWAT) contents in HFD mice. Additionally, 7MEGA™ showed promise in improving the metabolic health of individuals with obesity and regulate the levels of insulin hormone, pro-inflammatory cytokines and adipokines. Furthermore, Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPAR) α and γ, Uncoupling Protein 1 (UCP-1), Sterol Regulatory Element-Binding Protein 1 (SREBP-1), Fatty Acid-Binding Protein 4 (FABP4), Fatty Acid Synthase (FAS), Acetyl-CoA Carboxylase (ACC), Stearoyl-CoA Desaturase-1 (SCD-1) and CCAAT/Enhancer-Binding Protein (C/EBPα) were among the adipogenic regulators that 7MEGA™ could regulate.

CONCLUSION

In summary, this study uncovered that 7MEGA™ demonstrates anti-adipogenic and anti-obesity effects, suggesting its potential in combating obesity.

3-Bromo-4,5-dihydroxybenzaldehyde Protects Keratinocytes from Particulate Matter 2.5-Induced Damages

Cellular senescence can be activated by several stimuli, including ultraviolet radiation and air pollutants. This study aimed to evaluate the protective effect of marine algae compound 3-bromo-4,5-dihydroxybenzaldehyde (3-BDB) on particulate matter 2.5 (PM_2.5)-induced skin cell damage in vitro and in vivo. The human HaCaT keratinocyte was pre-treated with 3-BDB and then with PM_2.5. PM_2.5-induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, lipid peroxidation, mitochondrial dysfunction, DNA damage, cell cycle arrest, apoptotic protein expression, and cellular senescence were measured using confocal microscopy, flow cytometry, and Western blot. The present study exhibited PM_2.5-generated ROS, DNA damage, inflammation, and senescence. However, 3-BDB ameliorated PM_2.5-induced ROS generation, mitochondria dysfunction, and DNA damage. Furthermore, 3-BDB reversed the PM_2.5-induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis, reduced cellular inflammation, and mitigated cellular senescence in vitro and in vivo. Moreover, the mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling pathway and activator protein 1 activated by PM_2.5 were inhibited by 3-BDB. Thus, 3-BDB suppressed skin damage induced by PM_2.5.

Efficacy and safety of oral palmitoleic acid supplementation for skin barrier improvement: A 12-week, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled study

Background

Palmitoleic acid (omega-7) has been reported to be effective primarily for metabolic disorders. Recently, it has been reported to help improve quality of life (QoL) by improving skin symptoms.

Objective

The aim of this randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled clinical study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of oral palmitoleic acid in improving skin barrier, elasticity, and wrinkle formation in adult women.

Methods

In this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical study, 90 healthy participants were enrolled and received 500 mg/day palmitoleic acid (intervention) or corn oil without palmitoleic acid (control) for 12 weeks. Skin hydration and transepidermal water loss and skin elasticity, surface roughness, eye wrinkle volume, and wrinkle severity were measured at 6-week intervals to assess the skin barrier function and efficacy in wrinkle improvement, respectively.

Results

After 12 weeks, skin hydration and transepidermal water loss significantly improved in the intervention group compared to the control group. Skin elasticity, surface roughness, eye wrinkle volume, wrinkle severity, and participant-assessed clinical improvement score did not significantly improve compared with the control group.

Conclusion

Oral palmitoleic acid effectively improves the skin barrier function improvement, which may enhance QoL in aging adults.

Antiphotoaging properties of Zingiber montanum essential oil isolated by solvent-free microwave extraction against ultraviolet B-irradiated human dermal fibroblasts

Maintaining youthful skin from photoaging with natural products, including essential oils, is a vital strategy that has piqued the interest of researchers in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. This research aimed to investigate the protective properties of Zingiber montanum (J. Koenig) Link ex A. Dietr. essential oil against ultraviolet B (UVB)-induced skin damage and photoaging in normal human dermal fibroblast (HDFn) cells. The essential oil was extracted from fresh plant rhizomes using solvent-free microwave extraction. Its antiphotoaging properties in HDFn cells were investigated using reactive oxygen species (ROS)-scavenging, wound healing, matrix metalloproteinases (MMP-1, MMP-3, and MMP-9) expression, procollagen synthesis, and elastase and tyrosinase inhibitory assays. The results showed that the test oil exhibited no significant toxicity in HDFn at concentrations up to 10 mg/mL, with cell viability exceeding 90%. Following UVB irradiation at 30 mJ/cm², Z. montanum oil demonstrated time and concentration-dependent ROS radical scavenging capabilities. In a cell migration assay, the essential oil demonstrated wound-healing properties. Z. montanum oil suppressed the expression of MMPs and enhanced the synthesis of type I procollagen at a concentration of 0.1-1 mg/mL. In addition, 0.1-1 mg/mL Z. montanum oil inhibited elastase activity in a concentration-dependent manner but did not affect tyrosinase activity. From these findings, the essential oil of Z. montanum could have potential applications in developing cosmeceutical products to prevent skin photoaging.

Boosting the Photoaged Skin: The Potential Role of Dietary Components

Skin photoaging is mainly induced by ultraviolet (UV) irradiation and its manifestations include dry skin, coarse wrinkle, irregular pigmentation, and loss of skin elasticity. Dietary supplementation of nutraceuticals with therapeutic and preventive effects against skin photoaging has recently received increasing attention. This article aims to review the research progress in the cellular and molecular mechanisms of UV-induced skin photoaging. Subsequently, the beneficial effects of dietary components on skin photoaging are discussed. The photoaging process and the underlying mechanisms are complex. Matrix metalloproteinases, transforming growth factors, skin adipose tissue, inflammation, oxidative stress, nuclear and mitochondrial DNA, telomeres, microRNA, advanced glycation end products, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, and transient receptor potential cation channel V are key regulators that drive the photoaging-associated changes in skin. Meanwhile, mounting evidence from animal models and clinical trials suggests that various food-derived components attenuate the development and symptoms of skin photoaging. The major mechanisms of these dietary components to alleviate skin photoaging include the maintenance of skin moisture and extracellular matrix content, regulation of specific signaling pathways involved in the synthesis and degradation of the extracellular matrix, and antioxidant capacity. Taken together, the ingestion of food-derived functional components could be an attractive strategy to prevent skin photoaging damage.

Employment of cytology for in vitro skin irritation test using a reconstructed human epidermis model, Keraskin™

Skin irritation tests using reconstructed human epidermis (RhE) employ viability as an endpoint, but color interference or borderline results are often problematic. We examined whether the cytology of cells from treated RhE could determine skin irritancy. Six chemicals (three irritants; DnP, 1-B, PH, three non-irritants; DP, APA, HS) were evaluated in a RhE, Keraskin™. DP, HS, and PH were clearly classified with viability, but DnP, 1-B, and APA were often falsely determined, due to borderline values falling near the cutoff, 50%. In histology, the tissues treated with DnP, 1-B, and PH showed erosion of the stratum corneum, vacuolization, and necrosis in the basal layer. DP- and HS-treated tissues showed relatively normal morphology but APA induced necrosis similar to irritants. Cytology revealed that DnP, 1-B or PH depleted cells and induced irregular and abnormal cell shapes. In contrast, relatively regular and normal shapes and clear distinction between the nucleus and cytoplasm was observed for DP, APA and HS. To further confirm it, additional 10 substances, including false positives from OECD TG 439, were tested. Overall (16 substances in total), cytology: total area predicted the skin irritancy of test chemicals with the highest accuracy (87.5%) followed by cytology: cell count (81.3%), histology (75%) and viability (68.8%), confirming the utility of cytology as an alternative endpoint in the skin irritation test using RhE.

Diet and Skin Aging-From the Perspective of Food Nutrition

We regularly face primary challenges in deciding what to eat to maintain young and healthy skin, defining a healthy diet and the role of diet in aging. The topic that currently attracts maximum attention is ways to maintain healthy skin and delay skin aging. Skin is the primary barrier that protects the body from external aggressions. Skin aging is a complex biological process, categorized as chronological aging and photo-aging, and is affected by internal factors and external factors. With the rapid breakthrough of medicine in prolonging human life and the rapid deterioration of environmental conditions, it has become urgent to find safe and effective methods to treat skin aging. For diet, as the main way for the body to obtain energy and nutrients, people have gradually realized its importance to the skin. Therefore, in this review, we discuss the skin structure, aging manifestations, and possible mechanisms, summarize the research progress, challenges, possible directions of diet management, and effects of foodborne antioxidants on skin aging from the perspective of food and nutrition.

Cathepsin K inhibition-induced mitochondrial ROS enhances sensitivity of cancer cells to anti-cancer drugs through USP27x-mediated Bim protein stabilization

Cathepsin K (Cat K) is expressed in cancer cells, but the effect of Cat K on apoptosis is still elusive. Here, we showed that inhibition of Cat K sensitized the human carcinoma cells to anti-cancer drug through up-regulation of Bim. Inhibition of Cat K increased USP27x expression, and knock down of USP27x markedly blocked Cat K-induced up-regulation of Bim expression. Furthermore, inhibition of Cat K induced proteasome-dependent degradation of regulatory associated protein of mammalian target of rapamycin (Raptor). Down-regulation of Raptor expression increased mitochondrial ROS production, and mitochondria specific superoxide scavengers prevented USP27x-mediated stabilization of Bim by inhibition of Cat K. Moreover, combined treatment with Cat K inhibitor (odanacatib) and tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) reduced tumor growth and induced cell death in a xenograft model. Our results demonstrate that Cat K inhibition enhances anti-cancer drug sensitivity through USP27x-mediated the up-regulation of Bim via the down-regulation of Raptor.

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Inhibition of Cat K sensitizes cancer cells to anti-cancer drugs.

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Reduction of Raptor by inhibition of Cat K induces mitochondria dysfunction.

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Mitochondrial ROS induction by inhibition of Cat K induces USP27X expression.

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Up-regulation of USP27X by inhibition of Cat K stabilizes Bim protein.