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Skin Barrier, Structure, and Properties

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Lipids and Skin Health

Abstract

Terrestrial life was only made possible through the adaptive evolution of a waterproof barrier in the integument of organisms. In man, like in all other land-living higher vertebrates, this barrier is constituted by a uniquely organized lipid material situated between the cells of the horny layer of skin. Not having a native reference for the molecular organization of the horny layer’s lipid material has until recently limited our fundamental understanding of the skin both in healthy and disease states, and hampered technological progress in areas such as development of treatments for skin disease, transdermal drug delivery, dealing with toxicity from topical exposure to chemicals, and the development of noninvasive diagnostic sensors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Cell and Molecular Biology (CMB), Karolinska Institute, and Dermatology Clinic, Karolinska University Hospital, von Euler’s v 1, 171 77, Stockholm, Sweden

    Lars Norlén

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  1. Lars Norlén
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Correspondence to Lars Norlén .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Johnson & Johnson, Skillman, New Jersey, USA

    Apostolos Pappas

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Norlén, L. (2015). Skin Barrier, Structure, and Properties. In: Pappas, A. (eds) Lipids and Skin Health. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-09943-9_3

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