Characterization of mimetic lipid mixtures of stratum corneum

Lipid mixtures consisting of ceramide III, palmitic acid, and cholesterol were prepared at different thermal and humidity conditions. The lipid mixture, treated at temperature higher than 100 °C, displayed the similar thermal character to native human Stratum Corneum (SC), although hydration changed structural characters of the lipid mixtures as well as human SC: Hydration gave rise to the variation of lamellar distances in lipid mixtures such as lengthening of vertical repeat distance and slight-shortening of the lateral repeat distance. It also generated the configurational transition of amide groups. Since these variations depending on the heating and hydrating processes do not occur on pristine lipids, it can be confirmed that the lipid mixture forms hybrid phases by the association between heterogeneous lipids.