Time (and PPAR-beta/delta) heals ...(eded on top of this gel and the two cell...)

Date:3/23/2009

eded on top of this gel and the two cell types develop into an in vitro version of skin that looks remarkably like the real thing. The fibroblasts and keratinocytes can therefore be manipulated separatelyknocking down or overexpressing proteins before the skin is reconstructed.

Chong et al. found that PPARβ/δ-deficient fibroblasts made wild type keratinocytes hyperproliferative in OTCs by secreting extra doses of several growth factors. The fibroblasts were stimulated to produce these growth factors by keratinocyte-released cytokine IL-1 - underscoring the reciprocity between the two cell types. Blocking either the IL-1 signal or any of the growth factors released by the fibroblasts returned the OTCs to normal.

So why do fibroblasts lacking PPARβ/δ send out more growth factors in response to IL-1? The authors discovered that PPARβ/δ stimulates the production of sIL-1ra, a protein that inhibits IL-1 signaling by competing for the IL-1 receptor. Normally, this would decrease the IL-1 signal received by fibroblasts and therefore reduce the growth factor signals sent back to the keratinocytes. But in PPARβ/δ's absence, fibroblasts keep stimulating keratinocyte division. Similarly, PPARβ/δ knockout mice expressed less sIL-1ra after wounding and produced more growth factors that stimulate the epidermis. "Proliferation is important in early stages of wound healing," explains Tan. "But excessive proliferation isn't good: you can end up with hypertrophic scarring."

This may also be critical to prevent tumor development. Contradictory reports exist on whether PPARβ/δ promotes or inhibits epithelial cancers (4-6). Tan's group has already found that fibroblasts lacking the protein can increase the proliferation of squamous carcinoma cells; they now plan to investigate PPARβ/δ's expression in tumor-associated fibroblasts. "Fibroblasts often play important roles by communicating with
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Contact: Rita Sullivan news@rupress.org 212-327-8603 Rockefeller University Press Source:Eurekalert

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