A Review of Atomic-Force Microscopy in Skin Barrier Function Assessment
Journal
Journal of Investigative Dermatology
ISSN
0022-202X
Date Issued
2024-06
Author(s)
Jorge Pereda
Casper Milde Khatib
Sanja Kezic
Maria Oberländer Christensen
Sara Yang
Jacob P. Thyssen
Christoph Riethmüller
Imtisal Akhtar
Benjamin Ungar
Emma Guttman-Yassky
Merete Hædersdal
En-Te Hwu
DOI
10.1016/j.jid.2024.04.005
Abstract
Skin barrier function (SBF) disorders are a class of pathologies that affect a significant portion of the world population. These disorders cause skin lesions with intense itch, impacting patients’ physical and psychological well-being as well as their social functioning. It is in the interest of patients that their disorder be monitored closely while under treatment to evaluate the effectiveness of the ongoing therapy and any potential adverse reactions. Symptom-based assessment techniques are widely used by clinicians; however, they carry some limitations. Techniques to assess skin barrier impairment are critical for understanding the nature of the disease and for helping personalize treatment. This review recalls the anatomy of the skin barrier and describes an atomic-force microscopy approach to quantitatively monitor its disorders and their response to treatment. We review a panel of studies that show that this technique is highly relevant for SBF disorder research, and we aim to motivate its adoption into clinical settings.
Subjects
Atomic-force microscopy
Atopic dermatitis
Corneocyte morphology
Skin barrier function
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Type
journal article