A Serial Analysis of Gene Expression in Sun-Damaged Human Skin

• Published in: Journal of investigative dermatology Vol. 119; no. 1; pp. 3 - 13
• Main Authors: Urschitz, Johann, Urban, Zsolt, Granda, Chia, Souza, Kathleen A., Lupp, Claudia, Csiszar, Katalin, Boyd, Charles D., Iobst, Susanne, Schilling, Kurt, Scott, Ian
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Danvers, MA Elsevier Inc 01-07-2002; Nature Publishing; Elsevier Limited
• Subjects: Adult; Biological and medical sciences; Biopsy; Blotting, Northern; Dermatology; Ear, External; elastic fibers; Elasticity; epidermis; Epidermis - pathology; Epidermis - physiology; Epidermis - radiation effects; Female; full-thickness skin; Gene Expression - radiation effects; Gene Expression Profiling; Humans; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; photoaging; RNA, Messenger - analysis; SAGE analysis; Skin Aging - genetics; Skin involvement in other diseases. Miscellaneous. General aspects; Sunlight - adverse effects; full-thickness skin; elastic fibers; SAGE analysis; epidermis; photoaging; Human; Immunohistochemistry; Pathology; Skin disease; Ageing; Epidermis; Skin; Molecular biology; Derm; In series; Gene expression; Solar radiation
• ISSN: 0022-202X; 1523-1747
• DOI: 10.1046/j.1523-1747.2002.01829.x

To study the phenotypic changes in human skin associated with repeated sun exposure at the transcription level, we have undertaken a comparative serial analysis of gene expression of sun-damaged preauricular skin and sun-protected postauricular skin as well as sun-protected epidermis. Serial analyses of gene expression libraries, containing multiple mRNA-derived tag recombinants, were made to poly(A+)RNA isolated from human postauricular skin and preauricular skin, as well as epidermal nick biopsy samples. 5330 mRNA-derived cDNA tags from the postauricular serial analysis of gene expression library were sequenced and these tag sequences were compared to cDNA sequences identified from 5105 tags analyzed from a preauricular serial analysis of gene expression library. Of the total of 4742 different tags represented in both libraries we found 34 tags with at least a 4-fold difference of tag abundance between the libraries. Among the mRNAs with altered steady-state 11“Steady state” throughout this paper refers to the levels of mRNAs detected by SAGE or northern analysis as a function of synthesis and degradation of messenger RNA. levels in sun-damaged skin, we detected those encoding keratin 1, macrophage inhibitory factor, and calmodulin-like skin protein. In addition, a comparison of cDNA sequences identified in the serial analysis of gene expression libraries obtained from the epidermal biopsy samples (5257 cDNA tags) and from both full-thickness skin samples indicated that many genes with altered steady-state transcript levels upon sun exposure were expressed in epidermal keratinocytes. These results suggest a major role for the epidermis in the pathomechanism of largely dermal changes in chronically sun-exposed skin.