Journal of Skin and Stem Cell
Volume:10 Issue: 2, Jun 2023

Context: 

Functions of melanocytes are supported by many growth factors and cytokines derived from epidermal and dermal cells, especially keratinocytes and fibroblasts. In addition to these skin cells, elastin fibers are thought to be important for regulating melanocyte functions in normal and abnormal skin. However, the role of elastin has not been fully investigated. Recently, the research on the role of elastin in melanocyte functions has greatly increased even inhumanskin, whereas no full review article on this subject has been presented so far. Thus, the author tried to present a complete review article on this subject in animals and humans.

The author searched the literature on elastin and melanocytes in research databases.

Elastin fibers can affect the normal functions of melanoblasts/melanocytes in animals and humans. Moreover, elastin fibers influence melanocyte functions in abnormal skin. In vitiliginous skin, where melanin and melanoblasts/melanocytes are completely lost, elastin fibers are dramatically reduced. However, elastin fibers are completely restored or even increased in the dermis of repigmented skin after phototherapy and/or skin transplantation. Moreover, elastin fibers penetrate the basement membrane of repigmented skin, suggesting a direct contact between dermal elastin fibers and epidermal melanoblasts/melanocytes.

Elastin/elastin fibers may control the functions of mammalian melanocytes in normal and abnormal skin.

Psychodermatology is a newly emerging field that associates cosmetic dermatology with psychopathology. It analyzes the psychosocial aspects of beauty and physical attraction. Attractive people, in almost all cultures, are taken positively, and the less attractive ones are ostracized. The social pressure of staying physically attractivemaylead to several negative outcomes, which can be placed under a single heading of “charismaphobia” (i.e., the “fear of unattractiveness”).

The current study aimed to assess the diagnostic aspects of charismaphobia by developing and validating a new scale.

This quantitative study was conducted on 2904 participants in 4 phases. The Charismaphobia Scale was developed and validated through exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses (EFA/CFA). The convergent validity of the scale was determined through generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and narcissistic personality disorder.

The finalized version of the Charismaphobia Scale comprised 19 items in English and reported 4 factors of charismaphobia (i.e., self-exhibition, narcissistic trends, media consumption, and charismaphobic anxiety). Marvelous sampling adequacy (Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) = 0.946 and 0.871), highly significant adequacy of correlations between items (P = 0.000), excellent reliability ( = 0.939 and 0.843), strong factor loadings with no cross-loadings, adequate extractions of the items (all between 0.426 and 0.841), highly significant item-scale and item-total correlations (P < 0.001) were observed during the EFA and CFA. The convergent validity of the Charismaphobia Scalewasfound highly significant withgeneralized anxiety disorder (r=0.327; P< 0.001), obsessive-compulsive disorder (r = 0.344; P < 0.001), and narcissistic personality disorder (r = 0.250; P < 0.001).

The Charismaphobia Scale was developed and validated for the ease of clinical psychologists and dermatologists to assess the mental conditions underlying common dermatological problems.

Today, individuals tend to use natural products instead of synthetic additives in many areas. The hazelnut tree produces many by-products and fruit. Nuts and their by-products are rich in bioactive compounds.

This study investigated the biological activities of water and ethanol extracts obtained from hazelnut and its waste products to determine their potential usage in the cosmetic industry.

In this experimental study, disc diffusion test, minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC), minimal bactericidal concentration (MBC), or minimum fungicidal concentration (MFC) were applied to evaluate the antimicrobial potential of the extracts. The sun protection factor (SPF) of the extracts and commercial cream + extract mixtures was determined in vitro. In addition, antimicrobial cream formulations containing hazelnut extracts and Limosilactobacillus fermentum MA-7 probiotic candidate lactic acid bacteria from human milk were developed for the pharmaceutical industry to prevent infections. The good diffusion test was applied against test microorganisms to evaluate antimicrobial activity.

The hazelnut husk methanol extract had the highest inhibition zone diameter (19.41 mm) against Yersinia ruckeri. The MIC, MBC, or MFC of the extracts ranged from 1.25 to > 40 g/L. The SPF values of the extracts (range: 6.85-27.64) and commercial cream + extract (range: 11.92-26.28) mixtures were determined in vitro to obtain their potential use in sunscreens. The cream groups containing hazelnut extracts and probiotics showed a high antimicrobial effect on the tested microorganisms. The results of statistical analysis indicated that the cream + extract + probiotic pellet + probiotic supernatant group was statistically significant (P < 0.05) compared to other test groups.

The results showed that hazelnuts and their by-products have the potential to be used as a natural source of antimicrobials. Hazelnut and its by-products can be an alternative to synthetic antimicrobials and sunscreens in the cosmetic industry as a natural bioactive substance. In addition, it might contribute to the country’s economy by evaluating hazelnuts and their waste and by-products resulting from their processing in the cosmetic industry.

Interferons are generally prescribed in multiple sclerosis (MS) treatment. This study was done to investigate the severity and type of skin side effects of interferon beta (IFN) in patients with MS.

This was a cross-sectional descriptive study on the patients with MS taking IFN medication referred to Baqiyatullah Hospital in 2021 - 22. The sample size was 322, and the sampling method was census. Data were documented in a checklist, and analyses were performed by SPSS software version 24 at a significance level of 0.05.

About 46% of patients had no skin complications. The erythema at the injection site was the commonest skin complication (45.2%). The hair loss severity after treatment had a statistically significant increase than before (P < 0.001). If the severity of the patient’s current disease was moderate, the estimated odds of developing the erythema compared to no complication was 2.60 times higher than the patient with mild current severity of the disease (P = 0.003), and if the severity of the current disease was moderate, the estimated odds of developing erythema + eczema than no complications was 7.70 times higher than the patient with the current severity of the mild disease (P = 0.001).

The most important skin complications MS patients experience following the use of IFN are injection site skin reactions and erythema. Hair loss increased in MS patients after IFN treatment. Prospective studies on the procedure of hair loss after treatment with IFN in MS patients are recommended.

Sjogren-Larsson syndrome is a rare autosomal neurocutaneous disease, dermatologically manifested by congenital ichthyosis, associated with para/tetraplegia and developmental delay.

We present the case of two triplet patients, a girl, and a boy, 3 months old, admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) due to respiratory distress, swallowing, and spasticity. The dermatological evaluation was requested due to the presence of generalized cutaneous xerosis, predominantly facial, in the girl and mild xerosis on the soles and face in the boy. The set of clinical signs and symptoms, together with the histopathological examination that revealed findings of ichthyosis, corroborated the diagnosis of this syndrome.

The importance of describing this case is mainly due to the rarity of the presentation, especially in the case of triplets in which two of the brothers have the syndrome and one does not, as well as an alert to physicians for the correct diagnosis and multidisciplinary and dermatological follow-up.

Genital ulcers areamongthe main manifestations of Behçet’s disease (BD); however, large severe acute genital ulcers are not common.

A 29-year-old unmarried woman with a history of recurrent oral aphthae presented with a genital ulcer developed 2 weeks before admission. On clinical examination, there were two large painful ulcerations on the right labia majora, painful oral ulcerations, non-follicular pustules on the face and limbs, and painful edema on the left leg with positive Homan’s sign. The D-dimer level was elevated, and a Doppler ultrasound showed deep venous thrombosis of the right common femoral, femoral, and popliteal veins. The BD was diagnosed according to the International Criteria for Behçet’s Disease. The patient was treated with prednisone 40 mg/day and colchicine 1 mg/day, and the lesions developed well and healed within 2 weeks, leaving scarring lesions in the genital area.

Behçet’s disease is an important nonvenereal cause of genital ulceration. A high index of suspicion in a patient with mucocutaneous lesions might result in the early diagnosis, management, and prevention of complications.