β-Ionone Attenuates Dexamethasone-Induced Suppression of Collagen and Hyaluronic Acid Synthesis in Human Dermal Fibroblasts.

Dabin Choi,Bomin Son,Taesun Park,Wesuk Kang,Soyoon Park

doi:10.3390/biom11050619

Abstract

Stress is a major contributing factor of skin aging, which is clinically characterized by wrinkles, loss of elasticity, and dryness. In particular, glucocorticoids are generally considered key hormones for promoting stress-induced skin aging through binding to glucocorticoid receptors (GRs). In this work, we aimed to investigate whether β-ionone (a compound occurring in various foods such as carrots and almonds) attenuates dexamethasone-induced suppression of collagen and hyaluronic acid synthesis in human dermal fibroblasts, and to explore the mechanisms involved. We found that β-ionone promoted collagen production dose-dependently and increased mRNA expression levels, including collagen type I α 1 chain (COL1A1) and COL1A2 in dexamethasone-treated human dermal fibroblasts. It also raised hyaluronic acid synthase mRNA expression and hyaluronic acid levels. Notably, β-ionone inhibited cortisol binding to GR, subsequent dexamethasone-induced GR signaling, and the expression of several GR target genes. Our results reveal the strong potential of β-ionone for preventing stress-induced skin aging and suggest that its effects are related to the inhibition of GR signaling in human dermal fibroblasts.

Highlights

Human skin is mostly composed of a dense collagen-rich extracellular matrix (ECM)that provides mechanical and structural support
Daily rotational stress induces skin aging, as evidenced by reduced collagen deposition accompanied by the downregulation of collagen mRNA [12]
We aimed to investigate whether β-ionone attenuates the dexamethasone-induced suppression of collagen and hyaluronic acid synthesis, and we delineated the mechanisms involved

Summary

Introduction

Human skin is mostly composed of a dense collagen-rich extracellular matrix (ECM)that provides mechanical and structural support. Hyaluronic acid, which is embedded between bundles of collagen fibers, binds water and contributes to skin hydration [1,2,3]. During skin aging induced by various factors, such as stress, ultraviolet light, and smoking, the ECM undergoes progressive destruction, mainly resulting from collagen breakdown and hyaluronic acid degradation [4,5,6,7,8,9]. Even a short period (a few days–weeks) of topical stress hormone (glucocorticoid) treatment is sufficient to induce a marked reduction in collagen and hyaluronic acid levels in the skin of healthy volunteers [10,11]. Daily rotational stress induces skin aging, as evidenced by reduced collagen deposition accompanied by the downregulation of collagen mRNA [12]

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