Overview
The Skin Sciences Institute (SSI) at Children's Hospital Medical Center of Cincinnati provides a center of excellence and an organizational umbrella for scientists with expertise in epidermal barrier development, keratinocyte biology, wound healing, melanocyte biology and pigmentary disorders, biomedical engineering, optical imaging, quantitative image analysis, stratum corneum physiology, skin restoration, and clinical dermatology.
The SSI is a unique, multidisciplinary group of researchers from Cincinnati Children's Hospital Research Foundation, the Departments of Surgery and Dermatology, the Shriners' Burns Institute, and the Colleges of Pharmacy, Engineering and Nursing at the University of Cincinnati. Research efforts are focused on infant skin development, wound healing and skin restoration. Quantitative noninvasive methods are developed and applied to the investigation of these processes with the goal of optimizing skin health and minimizing environmental damage.
The research activities of the SSI and the formalization of its structure serve to elevate the importance of skin research and skin care delivery at the local, national and international levels. We contend that the changing medical climate is conducive to a broad, proactive and more fiscally accurate view of the skin. Such a view posits the skin as a critical interface for the delivery of health care and places skin science at the vanguard of change in the current managed care marketplace.
Methods have been developed and applied to understand the transcriptional control of embryogenesis and other fundamental aspects of biology. Major advances have been made in understanding the molecular constituents and control mechanisms underlying epidermal barrier development in mammals.
The resulting knowledge has shed new light on the molecular dynamics of boundary structures such as the stratum corneum. As a formally established group of investigators, the SSI must take a leadership role in developing the theoretical framework for the future. We have elaborated our thinking in a recently published position paper entitled "Skin Science and the Future of Dermatology."
When viewed as a sensorimotor interface which couples the organism to its environment, the skin is a very complex organ. Advancement of knowledge about the skin requires a multidisciplinary approach. During the past year, we have focused on firmly establishing partnerships with the disciplines of engineering and skin biophysics. The use of engineering principles and mathematical models to discern the features of irritant dermatitis and skin surface properties has yielded new information about infant skin, soon to be published.
Additionally, we have established partnerships with industry, particularly with those companies concerned with the microenvironment of the skin surface. Through collaborations with these partners, we can identify the biological basis for the observed changes in skin features and thereby provide the basis for improved health care delivery and better products.
In collaboration with the National Association of Neonatal Nurses, we are conducting a workshop on infant skin care. By communicating the newest scientific information on infant skin development and adaptation and by discussing the effects of standard practices and products, we will begin to develop the knowledge base for primary healthcare givers.
