Beiersdorf AG, Research & Development, Unnastrasse 48, 20245 Hamburg, Germany.
J Biomed Opt. 2012 Mar;17(3):036005. doi: 10.1117/1.JBO.17.3.036005.
Extracellular skin structures in human skin are impaired during intrinsic and extrinsic aging. Assessment of these dermal changes is conducted by subjective clinical evaluation and histological and molecular analysis. We aimed to develop a new parameter for the noninvasive quantitative determination of dermal skin alterations utilizing the high-resolution three-dimensional multiphoton laser scanning microscopy (MPLSM) technique. To quantify structural differences between chronically sun-exposed and sun-protected human skin, the respective collagen-specific second harmonic generation and the elastin-specific autofluorescence signals were recorded in young and elderly volunteers using the MPLSM technique. After image processing, the elastin-to-collagen ratio (ELCOR) was calculated. Results show that the ELCOR parameter of volar forearm skin significantly increases with age. For elderly volunteers, the ELCOR value calculated for the chronically sun-exposed temple area is significantly augmented compared to the sun-protected upper arm area. Based on the MPLSM technology, we introduce the ELCOR parameter as a new means to quantify accurately age-associated alterations in the extracellular matrix.
人体皮肤的细胞外皮肤结构在内在和外在衰老过程中受损。通过主观临床评估以及组织学和分子分析来评估这些真皮变化。我们旨在开发一种新的参数，利用高分辨率三维多光子激光扫描显微镜（MPLSM）技术对真皮皮肤改变进行非侵入性定量测定。为了定量比较慢性阳光暴露和防晒的人体皮肤之间的结构差异，我们使用 MPLSM 技术在年轻和老年志愿者中分别记录了胶原蛋白特异性二次谐波产生和弹性蛋白特异性自发荧光信号。经过图像处理后，计算出弹性蛋白与胶原蛋白的比值（ELCOR）。结果表明，掌侧前臂皮肤的 ELCOR 参数随年龄显著增加。对于老年志愿者，与防晒的上臂区域相比，从慢性阳光暴露的太阳穴区域计算出的 ELCOR 值显著增加。基于 MPLSM 技术，我们引入 ELCOR 参数作为一种新的手段，可准确地量化细胞外基质与年龄相关的改变。
