Topic Review
Skin-Lightening Active Ingredients in Japan
Japanese pharmaceutical cosmetics, often referred to as quasi-drugs, contain skin-lightening active ingredients formulated to prevent sun-induced pigment spots and freckles. Their mechanisms of action include suppressing melanin production in melanocytes and promoting epidermal growth to eliminate melanin more rapidly. For example, arbutin and rucinol are representative skin-lightening active ingredients that inhibit melanin production, and disodium adenosine monophosphate and dexpanthenol are skin-lightening active ingredients that inhibit melanin accumulation in the epidermis. In contrast, oral administration of vitamin C and tranexamic acid in pharmaceutical products can lighten freckles and melasma, and these products are more effective than quasi-drugs. On the basis of their clinical effectiveness, skin-lightening active ingredients can be divided into four categories according to their effectiveness and adverse effects.
  • 1.7K
  • 08 Aug 2022
Topic Review
Histamine in Pharmacotherapy of Itch
Itching can decrease quality of life and exacerbate skin symptoms due to scratching. Itching not only contributes to disease progression but also triggers complications such as skin infections and eye symptoms. Therefore, controlling itching is very important in therapeutic management. In addition to the well-known histamine, IL-31, IL-4 and IL-13 have recently been reported as factors that induce itching. Histamine-dependent itching is literally itching caused by histamine. It acts on the “sensory nerve” that perceives pain and itching, and the stimulus is transmitted to the brain as itching, as well as to the nerve endings, causing the release of neurotransmitters called neuropeptides. This neuropeptide then stimulates mast cells to secrete histamine and other substances.
  • 1.4K
  • 29 Jun 2022
Topic Review
Etiopathogenesis of Psoriasis
The underlying basis of psoriasis is skin inflammation (and, in the case of psoriatic arthritis, inflammation of the connective tissue which makes up the joints and the joint ligaments). The characteristic features of skin inflammation include hyperplasia of the epidermis, parakeratosis, and an inflammatory infiltration consisting of dendritic cells, macrophages, T-lymphocytes, and neutrophils. Abnormalities in the skin’s immune response are responsible for the development of the inflammation.
  • 1.4K
  • 09 Feb 2022
Topic Review
Extrusion Bioprinting for Skin Applications
Skin is a large and complex organ that serves protective and regulatory functions and is responsible for communication between the external environment and the inner organism. To fulfill these functions, skin has evolved as an organ with a complex anatomy derived from both the ectoderm (epidermis) and mesoderm (dermis). The skin includes not only these two major compartments but also important appendages, including hair follicles, sweat and sebaceous glands, nerve endings, and blood vessels, all of which have intricate spatial arrangements that render fabrication of the full skin organ challenging.
  • 1.4K
  • 26 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Vulvar and Vaginal Melanomas
Melanomas of the skin are poorly circumscribed lesions, very frequently asymptomatic but unfortunately with a continuous growing incidence. In this landscape, one can distinguish melanomas originating in the mucous membranes and located in areas not exposed to the sun, namely the vulvo-vaginal melanomas. By contrast with cutaneous melanomas, the incidence of these types of melanomas is constant, being diagnosed in females in their late sixties. While hairy skin and glabrous skin melanomas of the vulva account for 5% of all cancers located in the vulva, melanomas of the vagina and urethra are particularly rare conditions. The location in areas less accessible to periodic inspection determines their diagnosis in advanced stages, often metastatic. 
  • 1.3K
  • 22 Sep 2021
Topic Review
Skin Stem Cells and Wound Healing
The human skin is a necessary organ for survival; therefore, its integrity and uncompromised function are essential. Normally, skin wounds can heal without problem; however, some diseases or extensive damage may delay or prevent healing. Skin stem cells (SSCs) are heavily involved in the healing process, as they can replace, restore, and regenerate the epidermal cells that may have been lost, damaged, or have become pathologically dysfunctional. However, non-healing wounds represent a serious and life-threatening scenario that may require advanced therapeutic strategies that may involve the use of stem cell allografts.
  • 1.3K
  • 26 Oct 2021
Topic Review
OX40-OX40L Inhibition for the Treatment of Atopic Dermatitis
OX40 and OX40L are two checkpoint molecules that bind to potentiate pro-inflammatory T-cell responses that are pivotal to atopic dermatitis pathogenesis. Two OX40-OX40L inhibitors, rocatinlimab and amlitelimab, are being developed for the treatment of atopic dermatitis. Rocatinlimab, an anti-OX40 antibody, was evaluated in phase 2b, a randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial. At week 16, rocatinlimab groups achieved a greater reduction in the EASI percentage change from the baseline (−48.3% to −61.1%) against the placebo (−15.0%; p < 0.001), and clinical response was maintained 20 weeks after the treatment had ceased. Amlitelimab, an anti-OX40L antibody, was studied in a 12-week treatment phase 2a clinical trial, with a significant efficacy response observed within 2 weeks. At week 16, amlitelimab groups reached the EASI mean percentage change from the baseline of −69.9% and −80.1% versus the placebo (−49.4%; p = 0.072 and p = 0.009). Among the responders, 68% of amlitelimab patients were sustained 24 weeks following the last dose. Both treatments were shown to be safe and well tolerated. The evidence points to OX40-OX40L inhibitors as future options for atopic dermatitis treatment with potential disease-modifying effects.
  • 1.3K
  • 17 Feb 2023
Topic Review
3D-Bioprinting for Chronic Wound
Skin substitutes can provide a temporary or permanent treatment option for chronic wounds. The selection of skin substitutes depends on several factors, including the type of wound and its severity. Full-thickness skin grafts (SGs) require a well-vascularised bed and sometimes will lead to contraction and scarring formation. Besides, donor sites for full-thickness skin grafts are very limited if the wound area is big, and it has been proven to have the lowest survival rate compared to thick- and thin-split thickness. Tissue engineering technology has introduced new advanced strategies since the last decades to fabricate the composite scaffold via the 3D-bioprinting approach as a tissue replacement strategy. Considering the current global donor shortage for autologous split-thickness skin graft (ASSG), skin 3D-bioprinting has emerged as a potential alternative to replace the ASSG treatment. The three-dimensional (3D)-bioprinting technique yields scaffold fabrication with the combination of biomaterials and cells to form bioinks. 
  • 1.3K
  • 08 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Ultrasound Examination in Nail Apparatus Assessment in Psoriasis
The assessment of psoriatic nail changes in everyday practice is based exclusively on clinical symptoms that do not reflect the entire disease process in the nail apparatus. The use of imaging methods, especially widely available and inexpensive ultrasonography, creates the possibility of additional revealing and assessing grayscale of morphological changes of the ventral nail plate, nail bed, and matrix, as well as the attachment of the finger extensor tendon to the distal phalanx. What is more, it enables the assessment of inflammation severity in the power Doppler technique. A qualitative classification of nail plate morphological changes corresponding to the severity of psoriatic nail changes has been developed so far and attempts are being made to develop a quantitative method to assess not only the presence of changes but also the severity of inflammation. 
  • 1.3K
  • 20 May 2022
Topic Review
Tyrosinase and Melanogenesis Inhibition
Melanin is a widespread natural pigment that is responsible for color in hair, skin, and eyes. It provides protection against the deleterious effects of ultraviolet (UV) irradiation. Melanogenesis is the physiological process of melanin formation in which TYR, a copper-dependent enzyme, initiates the first step. Tyrosinase catalyzes the rate-limiting step where L-tyrosine is converted to L-3,4,-dihydroxyphenylalanine (L-DOPA), leading to the eventual formation of the pigment.
  • 1.3K
  • 27 Oct 2020
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