Abstract
Superoxide dismutase is widespread in the human body, including skin and its appendages. Here, we focus on human skin copper/zinc superoxide dismutase, the enzyme that protects skin and its appendages against reactive oxygen species. Human skin copper/zinc superoxide dismutase resides in the cytoplasm of keratinocytes, where up to 90% of cellular reactive oxygen species is produced. Factors other than cell type, such as gender, age and diseased state influence its location in skin tissues. We review current knowledge of skin copper/zinc superoxide dismutase including recent studies in an attempt to contribute to solving the question of its remaining unexplained functions. The research described here may be applicable to pathologies associated with oxidative stress. However, recent studies on copper/zinc superoxide dismutase in yeast reveal that its predominant function may be in signaling pathways rather than in scavenging superoxide ions. If confirmed in the skin, novel approaches might be developed to unravel the enzyme's remaining mysteries.
Introduction
Skin envelops the entire surface of human body and is daily exposed to environmental insults such as pathogens, injuries and ultraviolet (UV) radiation. Its important functions include regulation of body temperature, defense, and sensation as well as production of vitamin D. One of the skin's several defense mechanisms against environmental insults involves its structural organization: both skin layers, epidermis and dermis, contain cells, enzymes and other substances that play a critical role in defense. Several enzyme families contribute specifically to skin defense by scavenging pathogen-, injury- and UV radiation-derived molecules. The noxious molecules called free radicals can only be destroyed by the antioxidant activity of enzymes such as catalase, superoxide dismutase, peroxidase, and some supporting enzymes. We will focus here on human skin superoxide dismutase (SOD) highlighting, in addition to its best-known function of scavenging, further functions already shown in other models.
ROS
Free radicals have a single unpaired electron on the outer orbit. Derived from oxygen and also known as reactive oxygen species (ROS), they are generated by normal cellular aerobic respiration and are produced in mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum, and peroxisomes, and are involved in several biochemical reactions that regulate fundamental cellular signaling pathways such as cell proliferation, apoptosis, and autophagy (, ). The energy created by their unstable configuration is freed through reactions with adjacent molecules, such as inorganic and organic substances, proteins, lipids and carbohydrates, and with key membrane molecules and nucleic acids (–). Oxygen radicals and other reactive species cause modifications in the amino acids of proteins, which frequently result in functional or structural changes of enzymatic proteins (). They are able to induce covalent bonds with Kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1 (Keap1), a keratinocyte cytoplasmic protein that is normally linked to nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), which, according to Dinkova-Kostova et al. (), dissociates from Keap1 and transmigrates to the nucleus where it acts as a transcription factor and induces the production of antioxidant enzymes including copper/zinc SOD (Cu/Zn SOD) (Figure 1). ROS generation can also trigger autocatalytic reactions resulting in more free radicals that propagate the damage chain. These are inherently unstable and generally decay spontaneously. The superoxide anion, for example, is unstable and decays spontaneously in the presence of water to release oxygen and hydrogen peroxide ().
Figure 1
There are many other exogenous factors, such as pollutants and UV that can induce ROS production. Excessive ROS production can lead to skin aging and development of skin cancer (
Superoxide Dismutase
SOD is a highly conserved enzyme, that is abundantly expressed in the cytoplasm of aerobic organisms and plays a fundamental role in protecting cells from oxidative stress. It belongs to a family of enzymes that catalyze the dismutation of the superoxide radical (
Cu/Zn SOD is a stable 15.9 kDa homodimer. The dimerization is held by hydrophobic contacts (
Cu/Zn SOD and Skin
In a recently published immunocytochemical study Altobelli et al. localized Cu/Zn-SOD in human skin in several conditions (Figures 2A–F). Some studies show that during the processes of natural aging and photo-aging the activity of SOD does not change in the skin, while that of catalase is increased in the epidermis and considerably reduced in the dermis (
Figure 2

Structure of the normal human epidermis (man, aged 25; forearm skin). (A) Section of human skin showing the different layers of the epidermis. OPA trichrome staining (
UV rays induce the synthesis of matrix metalloproteinases (MMP) in the skin, leading to the destruction of collagen (
Direct murine skin-exposure to various oxidative stresses requires a high antioxidant capacity to maintain a low oxidant balance (
Thus, SOD protects human keratinocytes from UV-induced damage that includes aging caused by fragmentation of collagen and elastic fibers and activation of metalloproteases (
It seems that HaCaT cell lines become apoptotic in a dose-dependent way 24 h after radiation with 150 J/m2 of UVB and only 35 J/m2 of UVC (
Basal Cell and Spinocellular Carcinomas
The skin is the organ generally most affected by tumors because it is the most exposed to environmental insults. The importance of SOD in the skin is not always clear, i.e., its expression may be influenced by cytokines (
The activity of SOD is variable: it is reduced in the presence of melanomas, epitheliomas, and carcinomas (
Chronic exposure of the skin to sunlight promotes premature aging, reduces its immunological response to environmental antigens and is the main risk factor in the development of a variety of precancerous and malignant skin neoplasms due to the uncontrolled growth of keratinocytes and melanocytes (
Skin tumors develop mainly in areas most exposed to the sun: face, ears, neck and scalp (
Benign epithelial neoplasms are common and generally biologically harmless. These tumors, deriving from the multi-layered keratinized basal epithelium of the epidermis, hair follicles, and the ductal epithelium of the cutaneous glands, generally maintain the characteristics of their cells of origin. With regard to malignant tumors, the incidence of BCCs increases significantly in immunosuppressed patients and in those with congenital defects of DNA repair mechanisms and affects individuals over 45 years of age (
The main predisposing factor is exposure to UVR from the sun and consequent DNA damage; other factors include industrial carcinogens, chronic ulcers and draining osteomyelitis, old burn scars, ingestion of arsenical substances, ionizing radiation and (for the oral cavity) mastication of tobacco (
Conclusion
Cu/Zn SOD has long been known as an enzymatic protein, but morphological studies in skin began only in the late nineteen-eighties, first in pig and then in human (
Statements
Author contributions
VC and GA: conceptualization and design of the study. VC: drafting of original manuscript. VC, GA, and AB: literature reviewing. SV: editing and revising manuscript critically for intellectual content. GA, SV, AB, and VC: final approval of the manuscript as it has been submitted.
Acknowledgments
Thanks to of Drs. Giorgia Chalkiadaki and Marita Georgia Riccardi for their assistance during their apprenticeships for BSc degrees.
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
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Summary
Keywords
Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase, human skin, immunochemistry, skin tumors, ROS
Citation
Altobelli GG, Van Noorden S, Balato A and Cimini V (2020) Copper/Zinc Superoxide Dismutase in Human Skin: Current Knowledge. Front. Med. 7:183. doi: 10.3389/fmed.2020.00183
Received
24 February 2020
Accepted
17 April 2020
Published
12 May 2020
Volume
7 - 2020
Edited by
Ivan V. Litvinov, McGill University, Canada
Reviewed by
Takahiko Shimizu, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology (NCGG), Japan; Salvador Gonzalez, University of Alcalá, Spain
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© 2020 Altobelli, Van Noorden, Balato and Cimini.
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*Correspondence: Giovanna G. Altobelli ggaltobe@unina.itVincenzo Cimini cimini@unina.it
This article was submitted to Dermatology, a section of the journal Frontiers in Medicine
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