Topical Peroxisome Proliferator Activated Receptor Activators Accelerate Postnatal Stratum Corneum Acidification

Previous studies have shown that pH declines from between 6 and 7 at birth to adult levels (pH 5.0-5.5) over 5-6 days in neonatal rat stratum corneum (SC). As a result, at birth, neonatal epidermis displays decreased permeability barrier homeostasis and SC integrity, improving days 5-6. We determined here whether peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) activators accelerate postnatal SC acidification. Topical treatment with two different PPARα activators, clofibrate and WY14643, accelerated the postnatal decline in SC surface pH, whereas treatment with PPARγ activators did not and a PPARβ/δ activator had only a modest effect. Treatment with clofibrate significantly accelerated normalization of barrier function. The morphological basis for the improvement in barrier function in PPARα-treated animals includes accelerated secretion of lamellar bodies and enhanced, postsecretory processing of secreted lamellar body contents into mature lamellar membranes. Activity of β-glucocerebrosidase increased after PPARα-activator treatment. PPARα activator also improved SC integrity, which correlated with an increase in corneodesmosome density and increased desmoglein-1 content, with a decline in serine protease activity. Topical treatment of newborn animals with a PPARα activator increased secretory phospholipase A2 activity, which likely accounts for accelerated SC acidification. Thus, PPARα activators accelerate neonatal SC acidification, in parallel with improved permeability homeostasis and SC integrity/cohesion. Hence, PPARα activators might be useful to prevent or treat certain common neonatal dermatoses.