Institute of Animal Reproduction and Food Research, Polish Academy of Sciences, 10-748 Olsztyn, Poland
Marta Kopcewicz
Institute of Animal Reproduction and Food Research, Polish Academy of Sciences, 10-748 Olsztyn, Poland
Sylwia Machcinska-Zielinska
Institute of Animal Reproduction and Food Research, Polish Academy of Sciences, 10-748 Olsztyn, Poland
Katarzyna Walendzik
Institute of Animal Reproduction and Food Research, Polish Academy of Sciences, 10-748 Olsztyn, Poland
Joanna Wisniewska
Institute of Animal Reproduction and Food Research, Polish Academy of Sciences, 10-748 Olsztyn, Poland
Justyna Drukała
Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, 31-007 Krakow, Poland
Tomasz Wasniewski
Department of Obstetrics, Perinatology and Gynecology, School of Medicine, Collegium Medicum, University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn, 10-719 Olsztyn, Poland
Joanna Rutkowska
Department of Internal Medicine, Clinic of Endocrinology, Diabetology and Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, Collegium Medicum, University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn, 10-719 Olsztyn, Poland
Piotr Malinowski
Department of Surgery, School of Medicine, Collegium Medicum, University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn, 10-719 Olsztyn, Poland
Michał Pulinski
Department of Surgery, School of Medicine, Collegium Medicum, University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn, 10-719 Olsztyn, Poland
Although the impact of age, gender, and obesity on the skin wound healing process has been extensively studied, the data related to gender differences in aspects of skin scarring are limited. The present study performed on abdominal human intact and scar skin focused on determining gender differences in extracellular matrix (ECM) composition, dermal white adipose tissue (dWAT) accumulation, and Foxn1 expression as a part of the skin response to injury. Scar skin of men showed highly increased levels of COLLAGEN 1A1, COLLAGEN 6A3, and ELASTIN mRNA expression, the accumulation of thick collagen I-positive fibers, and the accumulation of α-SMA-positive cells in comparison to the scar skin of women. However, post-injured skin of women displayed an increase (in comparison to post-injured men’s skin) in collagen III accumulation in the scar area. On the contrary, women’s skin samples showed a tendency towards higher levels of adipogenic-related genes (PPARγ, FABP4, LEPTIN) than men, regardless of intact or scar skin. Intact skin of women showed six times higher levels of LEPTIN mRNA expression in comparison to men intact (p p p < 0.05) skin. Higher levels of FOXN1 mRNA and protein were also detected in women than in men’s skin. In conclusion, the present data confirm and extend (dWAT layer) the data related to the presence of differences between men and women in the skin, particularly in scar tissues, which may contribute to the more effective and gender-tailored improvement of skin care interventions.
