Original Article

Journal of Investigative Dermatology (1980) 74, 230–233; doi:10.1111/1523-1747.ep12541775

The Permeability Barrier in Essential Fatty Acid Deficiency: Evidence for a Direct Role for Linoleic Acid in Barrier Function

Peter M Elias1, Barbara E Brown1 and Vincent A Ziboh2

  1. 1Department of Dermatology, University of California School of Medicine, and Dermatology Service, Veterans Administration Medical Center, San Francisco, California, U.S.A.
  2. 2Department of Dermatology, University of Miami School of Medicine, Miami, Florida, U.S.A.

Received 4 September 1979; Accepted 7 November 1979.

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Abstract

Essential fatty acid (EFA) deficient rodents demonstrate abnormal epidermal permeability barrier function and differentiation, defects which can be corrected by either topical or systemic administration of linoleic acid. Since linoleic acid is a precursor of prostaglandins, correction of the defect in barrier function may either reflect a prostaglandin-mediated return toward normal epidermal differentiation, or, instead, a direct effect of linoleic acid. To test these possibilities severely EFA-deficient mice were pretreated daily with indomethacin and/or 5,8,11,14-eicosatetrayeonic acid, and then placed on normal (linoleic acid-supplemented) diets. Endogenous formation of prostaglandin E2 was determined by thin-layer chromatography after transformation into prostaglandin B2 with ethanolic-hydrochloric acid. Animals treated with both indomethacin and TYA demonstrated substantial reductions in prostaglandin E2 levels in liver and skin. Animals replenished with linoleic acid invariably demonstrated a rapid return of barrier function toward normal whether or not they were blockaded, while non-replenished animals, with or without inhibition of prostaglandin biosynthesis, demonstrated continued deterioration in barrier function. In other experiments, topically applied linoleic acid rapidly reversed the defect in barrier function at the sites of application prior to systemic correction of the EFA deficient state. These results suggest that: (1) defective cutaneous barrier function in EFA deficiency can be corrected locally without prior systemic reversal of the deficiency state; and (2) that linoleic acid may play a direct role in the epidermal permeability barrier independent of its role in prostaglandin metabolism.

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