Spatial Transcriptomics Reveal Compartmentalized Dysregulation of Lipid Metabolism in Acne Vulgaris
July 2025
in “
Journal of Investigative Dermatology
”
acne vulgaris lipid metabolism spatial transcriptomics comedonal acne sebocytes lipid production inflammatory signaling pustular acne sebaceous lipogenesis keratinocytes hyper-keratinizing phenotype retinoid signaling fatty acid binding protein sebum dysregulation retinoid resistance hyper-keratinization sebaceous lipids acne skin oil skin inflammation skin cells retinoids skin proteins skin oil imbalance
TLDR Acne involves increased lipid production and inflammation, affecting skin cell behavior and treatment resistance.
This study investigates the dysregulation of lipid metabolism in acne vulgaris using spatial transcriptomics on skin biopsies from patients with different types of acne lesions and healthy controls. The findings reveal that in comedonal acne, sebocytes exhibit increased lipid production and inflammatory signaling, while pustular acne shows suppressed sebaceous lipogenesis due to inflammation. Additionally, keratinocytes in acne lesions display a hyper-keratinizing phenotype and resistance to retinoid signaling, linked to altered fatty acid binding protein expression. These results suggest that sebum dysregulation contributes to retinoid resistance and hyper-keratinization in acne, highlighting the complex interplay between sebaceous lipids and keratinocyte behavior in the disease.
