People who do not have enough vitamin A in their diets are more susceptible to skin infections, but it is not clear how this vitamin affects skin immunity.
New research sheds some light on this mystery by identifying a previously unknown, bacteria-killing protein in the epidermis that requires the vitamin to work.
In the article estet-portal.com you can read in detail the results of a study that investigates the role of vitamin A in the induction of the expression of a protective antibacterial protein in the skin.
Bacteria-killing protein needs vitamin A to function
Researchers have found that one protein from the α family of resist-like molecules; (resistin-like molecule α) — RELMα — acts as an antibiotic to quickly kill bacteria. Vitamin A stimulates both RELMα, which is produced in mice, and the corresponding protein of the RELM family, called resistin.
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RELMα is the first example of an antimicrobial protein that requires vitamin A for its bacterial activity.
This finding provides us with important clues to how the skin is protected from infection and how skin protection is regulated by diet.
Dermatologists use a synthetic vitamin A called a retinoid to treat acne, psoriasis and other skin conditions, although how these drugs work has long been a mystery.
Compensation of vitamin A deficiency as an effective method of therapy
Impairment of the immune system of the skin leads to infection. Skin infection caused by bacteria such as streptococci is one of the most common reasons people go to the emergency room.
Leather — it is the largest organ of the human body, the task of which is to protect us from infection.
The team's experiments in human tissues and mice highlight a previously underestimated link between nutrition and innate skin immunity, confirming why vitamin A derivatives are effective treatments for skin conditions.
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Sheds light on the mystery of the effectiveness of retinoids
In addition to identifying RELMα's unique function, namely its requirement for vitamin A to kill bacteria, the team showed that mice fed a vitamin A-deficient diet suffered from RELMα deficiency. The researchers also found that mice lacking RELMα were more susceptible to infection and had different kinds of bacteria on their skin compared to typical mice.
Given how often retinoids are used in dermatology, the effects the results are potentially majestic.
The skin is an important link between the person and the environment and must protect him from infection and inflammation. While we are just beginning to understand how bacteria and the microbiome (the term for a population of bacteria living with the human body) influence skin conditions such as psoriasis and acne, the work of researchers is helping to identify the molecules that the skin uses to create a healthy relationship between the microbiome and hosts.
Vitamin A Deficiency: A Future Course of Research
RELMα, a small secreted cysteine-rich protein expressed by epidermal keratinocytes and sebocytes, has been shown to serve as an antimicrobial protein that is essential for resistance to skin infection.
RELMα induced by skin microbiota colonization.
For the expression of RELMα vitamin A is required, which protects against skin infection in a RELMα-dependent manner.
This study gives us a better understanding of how diet affects the skin's ability to defend itself against bacterial infection, but more research is needed to determine how these findings would affect patients with inflammatory skin conditions such as acne and psoriasis.
Thank you for staying with estet-portal.com. Read other interesting articles in the "Cosmetology" section. You may be interested in Vitamin C for acne: how it works
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