e.g. IL6;  SIRT6; 

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Dev Cell. 2020.


A Single-Cell Transcriptomic Atlas of Human Skin Aging

ZhiranZou1 7 12, XiaoLong5 11 12, QianZhao3 12, YandongZheng2 7 12, MoshiSong1 6 7 11 12, ShuaiMa1 6 11, YaobinJing1 7, SiWang1 3 6 11, YifangHe1 7 Concepcion RodriguezEsteban9, NanzeYu5, JiuzuoHuang5, PiuChan3, TingChen10, Juan CarlosIzpisua Belmonte9 11, WeiqiZhang4 6 7 8, JingQu2 6 7, Guang-HuiLiu1 3 6 7 13

  1. 1 State Key Laboratory of Membrane Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
  2. 2 State Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Reproductive Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
  3. 3 Advanced Innovation Center for Human Brain Protection, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disorders, Xuanwu Hospital Capital Medical University, Beijing 100053, China
  4. 4 CAS Key Laboratory of Genomic and Precision Medicine, Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
  5. 5 Division of Plastic Surgery, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Beijing 100032, China
  6. 6 Institute for Stem Cell and Regeneration, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
  7. 7 University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
  8. 8 China National Center for Bioinformation, Beijing 100101, China
  9. 9 Gene Expression Laboratory, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA, USA
  10. 10 National Institute of Biological Sciences, Beijing 102206, China

Skin undergoes constant self-renewal, and its functional decline is a visible consequence of aging. Understanding human skin aging requires in-depth knowledge of the molecular and functional properties of various skin cell types. We performed single-cell RNA sequencing of human eyelid skin from healthy individuals across different ages and identified eleven canonical cell types, as well as six subpopulations of basal cells. Further analysis revealed progressive accumulation of photoaging-related changes and increased chronic inflammation with age. Transcriptional factors involved in the developmental process underwent early-onset decline during aging. Furthermore, inhibition of key transcription factors HES1 in fibroblasts and KLF6 in keratinocytes not only compromised cell proliferation, but also increased inflammation and cellular senescence during aging. Lastly, we found that genetic activation of HES1 or pharmacological treatment with quercetin alleviated cellular senescence of dermal fibroblasts. These findings provide a single-cell molecular framework of human skin aging, providing a rich resource for developing therapeutic strategies against aging-related skin disorders.