miRNA-XXX: a new player regulating skin homeostasis and Atopic Dermatitis

There is no single cause of eczema. It probably has a mixture of inherited and environmental causes that act together at different times. The roles of miRNAs in the disease are not clearly defined. Originally identified as moderate biological modifiers, microRNAs have recently emerged as powerful regulators of diverse cellular processes with especially important roles in disease and tissue remodeling. Narrowing down a list of differentially expressed candidates in patients with atopic dermatitis we landed into the genomic locus of miR-XXX. Coupled with my finding that overexpression of miR-XXX in human keratinocytes promotes differentiation by causing cell cycle arrest in vitro and the down regulation of miR-XXX in lesional skin of atopic dermatitis displaying altered differentiation/hyperproliferation, I conclude miR-XXX as an important regulator of keratinocyte differentiation in normal skin, deregulation of which is likely the cause of hyperproliferation in atopic dermatitis. My findings raises hope finding potentially new therapeutics for skin disorders relating to inflammation, by restoring the levels of miR-XXX.