Regulation of elastase-type endopeptidase activity, MMP-2 and MMP-9 expression and activation in human dermal fibroblasts by fucose and a fucose-rich polysaccharide.

Tissue loss during ageing and age-dependent pathologies are the result of a disturbed regulation of proteolytic activities. Elastase-type endopeptidases, especially MMP-2 and -9, play an important role in this respect. Dermal fibroblast cultures and skin explant cultures were used in order to measure the efficiency of fucose and fucose-rich polysaccharides to downregulate the elastase-type endopeptidase activity. Fucose and fucose-rich polysaccharides were shown to downregulate this elastase-type activity, the basic activity and also the hyaluronan or kappa-elastin-stimulated activity. In skin explant cultures, we could demonstrate that fucose and fucose-rich polysaccharides produced an inhibition of the activation of the pro-form to the active form of MMP-9. Here, we show that mono-, di-, oligo- and polysaccharides acting on the elastin-laminin receptor and/or on the fucose-mannose receptor are efficient inhibitors of such enzymes by downregulating elastase-type endopeptidase activity, both at the level of their biosynthesis and at the level of the activation of the pro-enzymes. Fucose and fucose-rich polysaccharide preparations were shown to be efficient modulators of MMP-2 and MMP-9, activity with potential therapeutic applications in age-related pathologies accompanied by tissue loss.