[Age-dependent metabolism and polymerisation of collagen (author's transl)].

Investigations of collagen metabolism on the one side and of crosslinking of fibres on the other side speak for the assumption that the decrease of synthesis of collagen correlates with an increase of its crosslinking. This process can be seen in the skin of aging rats. The increase of steady crosslinks bonds represents a regulation to elongate the life-span of fibres, that means a compensation for the decreased production of new collagen.