Dermal Cell News Volume 4.37 | Nov 5 2018

TOP STORY

A Fully Human System to Cultivate Skin Cells for Grafting

Research to culture human skin cells called keratinocytes to produce skin grafts has been published by a team of researchers from Duke-NUS Medical School and the Singapore General Hospital. This method is the first to use a specific type of tissue-proteins known as laminins, found in the human body, to create a safer treatment for severe burns or other skin-related defects. [Press release from National University of Singapore discussing online prepublication in Nature Communications] Press Release | Full Article

(Ranked by impact factor of the journal)

DERMAL STEM CELLS & TISSUE REGENERATION

Splicing and Chromatin Factors Jointly Regulate Epidermal Differentiation

Using siRNA-based perturbation screens, scientists identified DNA and/or RNA binding regulators of epidermal differentiation. Computational modeling and experimental validation identified functional interactions between the matrin-type 2 zinc-finger protein ZMAT2 and the epigenetic modifiers ING5, SMARCA5, BRD1, UHRF1, BPTF, and SMARCC2. [Cell Rep] Full Article | Graphical Abstract

Plau and Tgfbr3 Are YAP-Regulated Genes That Promote Keratinocyte Proliferation

Investigators performed massively-parallel sequencing of skin biopsy mRNA and found dysregulation of 1491 genes in yes-associated protein (YAP) 2-5SA-∆C skin, including many with roles in cell activation and proliferation. [Cell Death Dis] Full Article

Design of a Novel Cell-Permeable Chimeric Peptide to Promote Wound Healing

In a scratch wound closure assay used to investigate wound healing capability, the most promising novel peptide chimera was found to promote the migration of keratinocytes indicating that the fusion to Tylotoin did not cause any loss in its activity. [Sci Rep] Full Article

SKIN CANCERS & DISORDERS

Bioinformatics-Based Analysis Reveals Elevated MFSD12 as a Key Promoter of Cell Proliferation and a Potential Therapeutic Target in Melanoma

Major facilitator superfamily domain-containing 12 (MFSD12) upregulation was found to activate PI3K signaling, and a PI3K inhibitor reversed the increase in cell proliferation endowed by MFSD12 upregulation. [Oncogene] Full Article

Activating Mutations in MEK1 Enhance Homodimerization and Promote Tumorigenesis

Researchers found that cancer-related, activating mutations in MEK could be classified into two groups: those that relieved inhibitory interactions with the helix A region and those that were in-frame deletions of the β3-αC loop, which enhanced MEK1 homodimerization. [Sci Signal] Full Article

Stress and Interferon Signaling-Mediated Apoptosis Contributes to Pleiotropic Anticancer Responses Induced by Targeting NGLY1

Compared with normal cells, NGLY1 was upregulated in melanoma cell lines and patient tumors. NGLY1 knockdown caused melanoma cell death and tumor growth retardation. [Br J Cancer] Full Article

IL-38 Has an Anti-Inflammatory Action in Psoriasis and Its Expression Correlates with Disease Severity and Therapeutic Response to Anti-IL-17A Treatment

Investigators demonstrated that skin and circulating IL-38 levels were reduced in psoriatic patients and in other skin diseases characterized by neutrophilic infiltrate. [Cell Death Dis] Full Article

Protective Effect of Pre- and Post-Vitamin C Treatments on UVB-Irradiation-Induced Skin Damage

Pre- and post-vitamin C treatments of the epidermal surface suppressed ultraviolet B (UVB)-induced cell death, apoptosis, DNA damage, reactive oxygen species production, and the inflammatory response by downregulating tumor necrosis factor-α expression and release. [Sci Rep] Full Article

Systemic Network Analysis Identifies XIAP and IκBα as Potential Drug Targets in TRAIL Resistant BRAF Mutated Melanoma

Researchers showed the 2^nd generation hexavalent TRAIL receptor-targeted agonist IZI1551 induced pronounced apoptotic cell death in mutBRAF melanoma cells. [NPJ Syst Biol Appl] Full Article

Subscribe to one of our other 19 science newsletters such as Extracellular Matrix News & Cancer Stem Cell News.

Gerontodermatology: The Fragility of the Epidermis in Older Adults

The authors focus on the increased fragility of older skin, the development of common skin pathologies and the efficacy and tolerance of dermo-cosmetic products in older adults. [J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol] Full Article

Visit our reviews page to see a complete list of reviews in the dermal cell research field.

Study Demonstrates DecisionDx-Melanoma Prognostic Test Accuracy in Patients with Stage II-IIIA Melanoma

Castle Biosciences, Inc. announced the presentation of data highlighting how the accuracy of the DecisionDx^®-Melanoma gene expression profile test in patients with Stage II and IIIA melanoma can improve adjuvant clinical trial design. [Press release from Castle Biosciences, Inc. discussing research presented at the 2018 Society for Melanoma Research International Congress, Manchester] Press Release

Galderma Announces Positive Results from Phase IIb Study of Nemolizumab in Patients with Moderate-to-Severe Atopic Dermatitis

Nemolizumab met the primary endpoint of a greater improvement in eczema area and severity index scores from baseline compared to placebo, and met secondary endpoints of major significance to quality of life improvement, such as Peak Pruritus Numerical Rating Scale score vs. baseline. [Nestlé Skin Health] Press Release

Mayne Pharma Acquires FDA-approved halobetasol foam, Complementing US Dermatology Portfolio

This product received US FDA approval in May 2018 and Mayne Pharma is planning for the commercial launch of this product in early 2019. [Mayne Pharma Group Limited] Press Release

Wellcome and Gates Join Bold European Open-Access Plan

Two of the world’s largest biomedical research funders have backed a plan to make all papers resulting from work they fund open access on publication by 2020. The London-based Wellcome Trust and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in Seattle, Washington, announced they were both endorsing ‘Plan S’, adding their weight to an initiative already backed by 13 research funders across Europe since its launch in September. [Nature News] Editorial

NSF Reviewing Program That Allows Graduate Fellows to Study Abroad

NSF has halted a program that each year allows hundreds of the nation’s best graduate students to work with experts in another country. [Science] Editorial

NEW European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) 2019 Congress
September 27-October 1, 2019
Barcelona, Spain

Visit our events page to see a complete list of events in the community.

NEW Postdoctoral Fellowships – Nanomedicine and Biomedical Engineering (University of British Columbia)

NEW Postdoctoral Fellowship – Chemical Biology (University of Dundee)

NEW Postdoctoral Fellowship – Protein Characterization (Aarhus University)

Postdoctoral Fellow – Dermatooncology (German Cancer Research Center)

Professorship – Emphasis on Dermato-Oncology (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität)

Postdoctoral Fellow – Wound Healing (Louisiana State University)

Faculty Positions – Cancer Biology (The Wilmot Cancer Institute at the University of Rochester Medical Center)

Tenure Track Group Leader – Mechanisms in Multicellularity or Tissue Regulation (Friedrich Miescher Institure for Biomedical Research)

Assistant Professor – Department of Biomedical Engineering (Boston University)

PhD or Postdoctoral Position – Tissue Repair, Stem Cell Fate and Tumor Heterogeneity (Université Libre de Bruxelles)

Recruit Top Talent: Reach potential candidates by posting your organization’s career opportunities on the Connexon Creative Job Board at no cost.

Have we missed an important article or publication in Dermal Cell News? Click here to submit!

Comments or suggestions? Submit your feedback here.