Fabien P. Chevalier

By Fabien P. Chevalier, Julie Rorteau and Jérôme Lamartine

Humankind has always been intrigued by death, as illustrated by the eternal quest for the fountain of youth. Aging is a relentless biological process slowly progressing as life cycle proceeds. Indeed, aging traduces an accumulation of physiological changes over time that render organisms more likely to die. Thus, despite our mastery of advanced technologies and robust medical knowledge, defining the molecular basis of aging to control lifespan is still currently one of the greatest challenges in biology. In mammals, the skin is the ultimate multitasker vital organ, protecting organisms from the world they live in. As a preferential interface with the environment, the skin is reflecting the internal physiological balances. The maintenance of these balances, called homeostasis, depends on the concurrent assimilation of diversified signals at the cellular level. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are noncoding RNAs that regulate gene expression by mRNAs degradation or translational repression. Their relatively recent discovery in 2000 provided new insights into the understanding of the gene regulatory networks. In this chapter, we focused on the role of three miRNA families, namely miR-30, miR-200, and miR-181, playing a key role in the progression of the skin aging process, with particular input in mechanistic considerations related to autophagy, oxidative stress, and mitochondrial homeostasis.

Part of the book: Non-Coding RNAs

By Lisa S. Martin, Emma Fraillon, Fabien P. Chevalier and Bérengère Fromy

Transient Receptor Potential Vanilloid (TRPV) channels are expressed in various skin cells, including non-neuronal cell types such as epidermal keratinocytes. They are polymodal sensors of the environment, regulating physiological function in response to a wide variety of stimuli. Indeed, in addition to their significant role in thermal responses and thermoregulation, TRPV channels are also implicated in local skin inflammation processes. Thus, these calcium permeable channels are associated to multiples skin diseases with inflammation, such as atopic dermatitis or psoriasis. In this chapter, we will mainly focus on TRPV1 and TRPV3 channels, as emerging pivotal targets for maintaining skin homeostasis in psoriasis-related inflammation.

Part of the book: Ion Transporters