Senescent fibroblasts in melasma pathophysiology

Abstract

It has been proposed that melasma is a photoageing skin disorder. The photoaged fibroblasts have been suggested as an important source of melanogenic factors which are involved in the regulation of pigmentation. To investigate whether melasma includes senescent cells, lesional and perilesional normal skin from 38 melasma patients was assessed using a cell senescence marker, p16INK4A. The results showed that lesional dermal skin had more p16INK4A‐positive senescent cells than perilesional skin. The impact of senescent fibroblasts was further investigated in a pilot study using radiofrequency (RF) intervention for melasma. It showed that the RF therapy decreased the number of senescent cells with increased expression of procollagen‐1, which were associated with reduced epidermal pigmentation. This leads us to the speculation that senescent fibroblasts may contribute to drive melasma and might be considered as a potential therapeutic target.

More than just bricks and mortar: Fibroblasts and ECM in skin health and disease

“…Fibroblast senescence has been a topic of intense research as it intimately links to tissue-level ageing and skin pathologies. [18][19][20][21] This topic is covered in this issue in a research article 22 and a comprehensive review. 23 31,32 and deficient in rats 33 and pigs.…”

Role of senescent fibroblasts in the development of idiopathic guttate hypomelanosis

“…Senescent cells are not merely cells that have aged, but rather are a crucial cellular component in the aggravation of ageing and development of ageing‐related disease via their secretion of various mediators, a state that is referred to as the senescence‐associated secretory phenotype (SASP). Interestingly, several studies suggest that senescent fibroblasts could play a role in the development of several skin disorders, including senile lentigo, melasma and vitiligo …”

A clinical, dermoscopic, histopathological and immunohistochemical study of melasma and facial pigmentary demarcation lines in the skin of color

“…One may hypothesize that solar elastosis might be an early change predisposing the patient under genetic or environmental triggers to the melasma phenotype, akin to a variant of photoaging. Senescent fibroblasts as an important source of melanogenic factors 8 lend support to the aforementioned hypothesis.…”