Transcriptional Profile of Aging in Healthy Human Skin

Gene expression changes were assessed from the non sun-exposed skin of the lower back of 98 healthy males aged 19-86. We show that contrary to previous thought, genome wide transcriptional activity does not display an exclusively linear correlation with ageing, but rather, in human skin, undergoes a period of significant transient change between 30 and 45 years of age. The identified transient transcriptional changes suggest a period of heightened metabolic activity and cellular damage mediated primarily through the actions of TP53 (tumour protein 53) and TNF (tumour necrosis factor). We also identified a subgroup of the population characterised by increased expression of a large group of hair follicle genes that correlates strongly with a younger age of onset and increasing severity of androgenetic alopecia.

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Haustead DJ, Stevenson A, Saxena V, Marriage F, Firth M, Silla R, Martin L, Adcroft KF, Rea S, Day PJ, Melton P, Wood FM, Fear MW