Efficacy of Pseudo-Ceramide-Containing Steroid Lamellar Cream in Patients with Mild to Moderate Atopic Dermatitis: A Randomized, Double-Blind Study.

INTRODUCTION: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory skin disorder involving decreased barrier function of the stratum corneum. This decrease, caused by a reduction in ceramide, the primary component of intercellular lipids in the stratum corneum, leads to a disturbance in the lamellar structure. METHODS: We developed a formulation (test cream) containing a steroid and synthetic pseudo-ceramide (SLE: N-(3-hexadecyloxy-2-hydroxypropyl)-N-2-hydroxyethyl hexadecanamide) that forms a lamellar structure on the skin after its application and drying. The formulation or control cream (a formulation containing a steroid but not pseudo-ceramide that does not form a lamellar structure) was applied twice daily for 2 weeks to the lesional area of 34 participants with mild to moderate AD symptoms. RESULTS: The test cream showed a periodic structure with an interface space of approximately 8.2 nm in transmission electron microscopy and small- and wide-angle X-ray scattering, similar to the lamellar structure in the human stratum corneum. In the double-blind test, the anti-inflammatory effects of the test cream (n = 17) were comparable to those of the control cream (n = 17). In the test cream group, a significant increase in the stratum corneum moisture content (p < 0.01) and significant decrease in transepidermal water loss (p < 0.05) were observed at weeks 1 and 2 after application compared with those before application. No such change was observed in the control group. CONCLUSION: The results indicate that, even with a relatively short application period of 2 weeks, the test cream not only suppressed inflammation of the lesional area, but also improved the inherent barrier function of the stratum corneum, suggesting its potential as a treatment option for patients with AD.

Efficacy of Heparinoid Cream Containing Pseudo-Ceramide for Remission of Atopic Dermatitis.

PURPOSE: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is characterized by chronic inflammation, which frequently recurs, is exacerbated, and enters remission. A maintenance remission period is important for AD patients. We developed a formulation for use during AD remission, containing heparinoid and pseudo-ceramide that forms a lamellar structure. We evaluated the allergen permeability and examined the formulation's efficacy in maintaining remission in patients with AD. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seventeen AD patients applied a cream containing 0.3% heparinoid and pseudo-ceramide (test cream group, n = 10), or a general cream containing 0.3% heparinoid (control cream group, n = 7) to their arm for four weeks after inducing remission with the application of a steroid cream for two weeks. RESULTS: The lamellar structure of the test cream was confirmed with small- and wide-angle x-ray scattering analysis and observation by transmission electron microscopy. The test cream inhibited the penetration of V8 protease significantly compared to the control cream in vitro. According to AD severity score by dermatologists, the effects remission maintenance of the test cream group were comparable to those of the control cream group. However, the test cream group had a significantly increased skin hydration value compared to the control cream group. A significant decrease in transepidermal water loss, an indicator of skin barrier function, was shown in the test cream group compared to the control cream group. CONCLUSION: The cream with lamellar structures containing heparinoid and pseudo-ceramides may inhibit allergen penetration. Moreover, skin properties improved during the remission period; thus, the formulation we developed was suitable for use during the AD remission period.

t-Flavanone Improves the Male Pattern of Hair Loss by Enhancing Hair-Anchoring Strength: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study.

INTRODUCTION: trans-3,4'-Dimethyl-3-hydroxyflavanone (t-flavanone) is a derivative of astilbin that actively stimulates hair growth. The aim of the present study was to identify the mechanisms of action of t-flavanone on hair growth. METHODS: A double-blind usage test was performed with healthy volunteers who had androgenic alopecia (AGA). The subjects were divided into three groups with equal average baldness. The members in each group applied a vasodilator-containing hair lotion supplemented with either 0, 0.1, or 0.3% (wt) t-flavanone twice a day for 30 weeks. The efficacy of t-flavanone was evaluated based on the parietal global and microscopic images. At week 30, the anchoring strength of hair was measured by the average peak force required for plucking out a single hair in a non-bald area using a digital force gauge. Desmoglein expression in the cultured human hair follicle was analyzed by Western blotting. RESULTS: After 30 weeks, t-flavanone significantly improved AGA and enhanced the hair-anchoring strength in a hair diameter-independent manner. Culture of human hair follicles in vitro with t-flavanone resulted in the upregulation of desmoglein protein expression. CONCLUSIONS: The results of our in vivo and in vitro studies demonstrated that t-flavanone enhanced the cell-cell adhesions in hair follicles; thus, reinforcement of hair rooting may be a mechanism by which t-flavanone promotes hair growth. FUNDING: Kao Corp.

Angular-type furocoumarins from the roots of Angelica atropurpurea and their inhibitory activity on the NFAT signal transduction pathway.

One new (1) and two known angular-type (2,3) furocoumarins, isoarchangelicin (1), archangelicin (2), and 2'-angeloyl-3'-isovaleryl vaginate (3), were isolated from the roots of Angelica atropurpurea. The structure of the new compound was established on the basis of one- and two-dimensional NMR spectra and other spectroscopic studies. The inhibitory activity of these three compounds and a deacylated form of archangelicin (4) on the nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT) signal transduction pathway was tested by NFAT-responsive luciferase reporter gene assay in cultured cells. Although 4 did not exhibit inhibitory activity on NFAT signaling, 1-3 exhibited dose-dependent inhibition with IC50 values of 16.5 (1), 9.0 (2), and 9.2 (3) µM.

Stem cell factor-KIT signalling plays a pivotal role in regulating pigmentation in mammalian hair.

Hair greying is one of the most distinct but least comprehended features of senescence. The signalling of stem cell factor (SCF) and its receptor KIT has been documented to regulate essential roles in the maintenance of embryonic melanocyte lineages and postnatal cutaneous melanogenesis, although little is known about its detailed mechanisms in postnatal hair pigmentation. To address this, anagen human hair follicles and C57BL/6 murine pelage were analysed in this study. Molecular biological analyses of murine follicular skin indicated a significant increase of membrane-bound SCF expression, reaching its peak 8-16 days after anagen induction in concert with the escalation of cutaneous tyrosinase activity and corresponding pigmentation. Administration of KIT-neutralizing antibody abolished MITF and tyrosinase expressions, resulting in a reversible hair depigmentation in murine regenerated hair and human hair organ culture. Quantitative RT-PCR of human hair follicles indicated that KIT expression as well as the expression of several melanogenic factors, including MITF, was significantly lower in unpigmented than in pigmented follicles. Taken together, these data revealed a pivotal role of SCF-KIT signalling in the maintenance of human hair follicle melanogenesis during the anagen cycle and its involvement in physiological ageing of the hair follicle pigmentary unit.

Different contribution of muscle and liver lipid metabolism to endurance capacity and obesity susceptibility of mice.

We investigated strain differences in whole body energy metabolism, peripheral lipid metabolism, and energy metabolism-related gene expression and protein levels in BALB/c, C57BL/6J, and A/J mice to evaluate the relationship between endurance capacity, susceptibility to diet-induced obesity, and differences in lipid metabolism in muscle and liver. A high-fat diet significantly increased body weight and fat weight in C57BL/6J mice, but not in BALB/c and A/J mice. The endurance capacity of BALB/c mice was 52% greater than that of C57BL/6J mice and 217% greater than that of A/J mice. The respiratory exchange ratio was lowest in BALB/c mice, higher in C57BL/6J mice, and highest in A/J mice, which inversely correlated with the endurance capacity and fatty acid beta-oxidation activity in the muscle. Plasma lactate levels measured immediately after exercise were lowest in BALB/c mice and highest in A/J mice, although there was no difference under resting conditions, suggesting that carbohydrate breakdown is suppressed by enhanced fat utilization during exercise in BALB/c mice. On the other hand, the body weight increase induced by high-fat feeding was related to a reduced whole body energy expenditure, higher respiratory quotient, and lower fatty acid beta-oxidation activity in the liver. In addition, beta-oxidation activity in the muscle and liver roughly paralleled the mRNA and protein levels of lipid metabolism-related molecules, such as peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor and medium-chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase, in each tissue. These findings indicate that genetically determined basal muscle and liver lipid metabolism and responsiveness to exercise influence physical performance and obesity susceptibility.

Aquaporins and glycerol metabolism.

The discovery of aquaporin (AQP) has made a great impact on life sciences. AQPs are a family of homologous water channels widely distributed in plants, unicellular organisms, invertebrates, and vertebrates. So far, 13 AQPs have been identified in human. AQP3, 7, 9, and 10 are subcategorized as aquaglyceroporins which permeabilize glycerol as well as water. Many investigators have demonstrated that AQPs play a crucial role in maintaining water homeostasis, but the physiological significance of some AQPs as a glycerol channel is not fully understood. Adipose tissue is a major source of glycerol and glycerol is one of substrates for gluconeogenesis. This review focuses on recent studies of glycerol metabolism through aquaglyceroporins, and briefly discusses the importance of glycerol channel in adipose tissues and liver.

Aquaporin 7 deficiency is associated with development of obesity through activation of adipose glycerol kinase.

In adipocytes, hydrolysis of triglycerides results in the release of free fatty acids and glycerol. Aquaporin 7 (AQP7), a member of aquaglyceroporins, is known to permeabilize glycerol and water. We recently generated Aqp7-knockout (KO) mice and demonstrated that such mice have low plasma glycerol levels and impaired glycerol release in response to beta3-adrenergic agonist, suggesting that AQP7 acts as a glycerol gateway molecule in adipocytes for the efficient release of glycerol in vivo. Although there was no difference in body weight between WT and KO mice until 10 weeks of age, here we found that KO mice developed adult-onset obesity. The body weight and fat mass increased significantly in KO mice compared with WT mice after 12 weeks of age. Adipocytes of KO mice were large and exhibited accumulation of triglycerides compared with WT mice. The KO mice developed obesity and insulin resistance even at a young age after consumption of high-fat/high-sucrose diet. We demonstrated the enhanced glycerol kinase enzymatic activity in Aqp7-KO and -knockdown adipocytes. A series of our results indicate that AQP7 disruption elevates adipose glycerol kinase activity, accelerates triglycerides synthesis in adipocytes, and, finally, develops obesity.

Green tea extract improves endurance capacity and increases muscle lipid oxidation in mice.

Green tea contains a high level of polyphenolic compounds known as catechins. We investigated the effects of green tea extract (GTE), which is rich in catechins, on endurance capacity, energy metabolism, and fat oxidation in BALB/c mice over a 10-wk period. Swimming times to exhaustion for mice fed 0.2-0.5% (wt/wt) GTE were prolonged by 8-24%. The effects were dose dependent and accompanied by lower respiratory quotients and higher rates of fat oxidation as determined by indirect calorimetry. In addition, feeding with GTE increased the level of beta-oxidation activity in skeletal muscle. Plasma lactate concentrations in mice fed GTE were significantly decreased after exercise, concomitant with increases in free fatty acid concentrations in plasma, suggesting an increased lipid use as an energy source in GTE-fed mice. Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), a major component of tea catechins, also enhanced endurance capacity, suggesting that the endurance-improving effects of GTE were mediated, at least in part, by EGCG. The beta-oxidation activity and the level of fatty acid translocase/CD36 mRNA in the muscle was higher in GTE-fed mice compared with control mice. These results indicate that GTE are beneficial for improving endurance capacity and support the hypothesis that the stimulation of fatty acid use is a promising strategy for improving endurance capacity.

Adaptation to fasting by glycerol transport through aquaporin 7 in adipose tissue.

Adipocytes hydrolyze triglycerides and secrete free fatty acids and glycerol into the circulation. The molecular mechanism involved in glycerol transport from adipocytes has not been elucidated. Here, we investigated glycerol and glucose metabolism in mice lacking aquaporin 7 (Aqp7), a member of the aquaglyceroporins expressed in adipose tissue, and demonstrated that Aqp7 functions as a glycerol gateway molecule in vivo. Aqp7-knockout (KO) mice had lower plasma glycerol levels compared with WT mice but had normal plasma free fatty acid levels. The increase in plasma glycerol level in response to beta(3)-adrenergic agonist was severely impaired in KO mice. Epinephrine-stimulated glycerol secretion was also impaired in Aqp7 knockdown adipocytes. During prolonged fasting, plasma glycerol was elevated and the plasma glucose level was maintained in WT mice. In contrast, KO mice showed a disrupted increase of plasma glycerol and rapid reduction of plasma glucose during prolonged fasting. Our findings indicate that the lack of effective glycerol transport from adipocytes by glycerol gateway molecule causes defective adaptation to prolonged fasting.

Adiponectin specifically increased tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 through interleukin-10 expression in human macrophages.

BACKGROUND: Vascular inflammation and subsequent matrix degradation play an important role in the development of atherosclerosis. We previously reported that adiponectin, an adipose-specific plasma protein, accumulated to the injured artery and attenuated vascular inflammatory response. Clinically, high plasma adiponectin level was associated with low cardiovascular event rate in patients with chronic renal failure. The present study was designed to elucidate the effects of adiponectin on matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases (TIMPs) in human monocyte-derived macrophages. METHODS AND RESULTS: Human monocyte-derived macrophages were incubated with the physiological concentrations of human recombinant adiponectin for the time indicated. Adiponectin treatment dose-dependently increased TIMP-1 mRNA levels without affecting MMP-9 mRNA levels. Adiponectin also augmented TIMP-1 secretion into the media, whereas MMP-9 secretion and activity were unchanged. Time course experiments indicated that TIMP-1 mRNA levels started to increase at 24 hours of adiponectin treatment and were significantly elevated at 48 hours. Adiponectin significantly increased interleukin-10 (IL-10) mRNA expression at the transcriptional level within 6 hours and significantly increased IL-10 protein secretion within 24 hours. Cotreatment of adiponectin with anti-IL-10 monoclonal antibody completely abolished adiponectin-induced TIMP-1 mRNA expression. CONCLUSIONS: Adiponectin selectively increased TIMP-1 expression in human monocyte-derived macrophages through IL-10 induction. This study identified, for the first time, the adiponectin/IL-10 interaction against vascular inflammation.

Divergent effects of soy protein diet on the expression of adipocytokines.

Adipose tissue secretes various bioactive molecules called adipocytokines. Dysregulation of adipocytokines plays an important role in the development of atherosclerotic vascular diseases. Consumption of vegetable protein reduces the risks of atherosclerotic vascular diseases. Here, we investigated the effects of 10-day dietary soy protein isolate (SPI) on the regulation of adipocytokines in Wistar rats. No significant difference in body weight was observed between SPI and Casein (animal protein) group. Expression of adipose PAI-1 was lower and expression and plasma concentration of adiponectin were higher in SPI than Casein group. Triglyceride content was lower and fatty acid synthase mRNA level in adipose tissue was lower in SPI than Casein group. Although SREBP-1 mRNA expression was decreased in the liver of SPI group, adipose SREBP and PPARgamma mRNA levels remained unchanged. Our data suggest that dietary SPI alters the gene expressions in adipose tissue and has beneficial effects on the expression of adipocytokines.

Association of hypoadiponectinemia with impaired vasoreactivity.

Endothelial dysfunction is a crucial feature in the evolution of atherosclerosis. Adiponectin is an adipocyte-specific plasma protein with antiatherogenic and antidiabetic properties. In the present study, we investigated the relation between adiponectin and endothelium-dependent vasodilation. We analyzed endothelial function in 202 hypertensive patients, including those who were not taking any medication. Forearm blood flow was measured by strain-gauge plethysmography. Plasma adiponectin level was highly correlated with the vasodilator response to reactive hyperemia in the total (r=0.257, P<0.001) and no-medication (r=0.296, P=0.026) groups but not with nitroglycerin-induced hyperemia, indicating that adiponectin affected endothelium-dependent vasodilation. Multiple regression analysis of data from all hypertensive patients revealed that plasma adiponectin level was independently correlated with the vasodilator response to reactive hyperemia. Vascular reactivity was also analyzed in aortic rings from adiponectin-knockout (KO) and wild-type (WT) mice. Adiponectin-KO mice showed obesity, hyperglycemia, and hypertension compared with WT mice after 4 weeks on an atherogenic diet. Endothelium-dependent vasodilation in response to acetylcholine was significantly reduced in adiponectin-KO mice compared with WT mice, although no significant difference was observed in endothelium-independent vasodilation in response to sodium nitroprusside. Our observations suggest that hypoadiponectinemia is associated with impaired endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation and that the measurement of plasma adiponectin level might be helpful as a marker of endothelial dysfunction.

Disturbed secretion of mutant adiponectin associated with the metabolic syndrome.

Adiponectin, an adipocyte-derived protein, consists of collagen-like fibrous and complement C1q-like globular domains, and circulates in human plasma in a multimeric form. The protein exhibits anti-diabetic and anti-atherogenic activities. However, adiponectin plasma concentrations are low in obese subjects, and hypoadiponectinemia is associated with the metabolic syndrome, which is a cluster of insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and dyslipidemia. We have recently reported a missense mutation in the adiponectin gene, in which isoleucine at position 164 in the globular domain is substituted with threonine (I164T). Subjects with this mutation showed markedly low level of plasma adiponectin and clinical features of the metabolic syndrome. Here, we examined the molecular characteristics of the mutant protein associated with a genetic cause of hypoadiponectinemia. The current study revealed (1) the mutant protein showed an oligomerization state similar to the wild-type as determined by gel filtration chromatography and, (2) the mutant protein exhibited normal insulin-sensitizing activity, but (3) pulse-chase study showed abnormal secretion of the mutant protein from adipose tissues. Our results suggest that I164T mutation is associated with hypoadiponectinemia through disturbed secretion into plasma, which may contribute to the development of the metabolic syndrome.

Dietary alpha-linolenic acid-rich diacylglycerols reduce body weight gain accompanying the stimulation of intestinal beta-oxidation and related gene expressions in C57BL/KsJ-db/db mice.

Dietary fat contributes to the development of obesity. We examined the effect of dietary diacylglycerol (DG), which is a minor component of edible oils, on the development of obesity and expression of genes involved in energy homeostasis in C57BL/KsJ-db/db mice. Mice were fed diets containing either 14 g/100 g (%) triacylglycerol (TG), 10% TG + 4% alpha-linolenic acid-rich TG (ALATG), or 10% TG + 4% alpha-linolenic acid-rich diacylglycerol (ALADG) for 1 mo. Mice fed ALADG, but not ALATG had less body weight gain and higher rectal temperature than the TG-fed controls. These effects were accompanied by up-regulation of acyl-CoA oxidase, medium-chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase, fatty acid binding protein, and uncoupling protein (UCP)-2 mRNA and beta-oxidation activity in the small intestine. In contrast, the treatments did not affect beta-oxidation and related gene expressions in the liver or UCP-3 mRNA level in skeletal muscle. These results indicate that stimulation of lipid metabolism in the small intestine might be closely related to the antiobesity and thermogenic effects of dietary DG. In addition, structural differences between DG and TG, not variations in the composition of fatty acids, are responsible for the different effects of the lipids.