Journal of Inflammation Research (Mar 2022)
Lipocalin 2 Participates in the Epidermal Differentiation and Inflammatory Processes of Psoriasis
Abstract
Kaixuan Ren, Yumin Xia Department of Dermatology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, 710004, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Yumin Xia, Department of Dermatology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University, 157 Xiwu Road, Xi’an, 710004, People’s Republic of China, Tel/Fax +86-29-87679969, Email [email protected]: As a multifunctional cytokine, lipocalin 2 is weakly expressed in skin and serum under normal conditions. However, it is over-expressed by neutrophils and keratinocytes in the skin lesions and sera in several skin diseases. Recent studies demonstrated that lipocalin 2 participates in the pathogenesis of psoriasis by exerting versatile effects on skin resident cells and infiltrating immune cells. Lipocalin 2 inhibits the synthesis of keratin, involucrin, and loricrin in keratinocytes, leading to epidermal parakeratosis via the Tcf7l1-lipocalin 2 signaling axis. It also recruits inflammatory cells such as T cells and neutrophils into skin lesions via the IL-23/IL17, p38-MAPK, and ERK-1/2 signaling pathways. Additionally, lipocalin 2 and other cytokines such as IL-17 have the synergetic effects on skin cells. The neutralization of lipocalin 2 or relevant cytokines can alleviate psoriasis, verifying that lipocalin 2 is an effective interfering target for psoriasis. In this review, we summarize the roles of lipocalin 2 in the processes of psoriatic inflammation and the promising therapeutic strategies based on lipocalin 2-related molecules.Keywords: lipocalin 2, psoriasis, keratinocyte, inflammation, differentiation
