Contribution of GATA6 to homeostasis of the human upper pilosebaceous unit and acne pathogenesis

• Published in: Nature communications 2020-10, Vol.11 (1), p.5067-5067, Article 5067
• Main Authors: Oulès, Bénédicte, Philippeos, Christina, Segal, Joe, Tihy, Matthieu, Vietri Rudan, Matteo, Cujba, Ana-Maria, Grange, Philippe A., Quist, Sven, Natsuga, Ken, Deschamps, Lydia, Dupin, Nicolas, Donati, Giacomo, Watt, Fiona M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 13/1; 13/109; 13/21; 13/31; 13/51; 13/89; 13/95; 14/19; 14/63; 38; 38/88; 38/91; 631/80/304; 692/699/4033/4035; 82/79; Acne; Acne Vulgaris - genetics; Acne Vulgaris - metabolism; Acne Vulgaris - pathology; Acne Vulgaris - physiopathology; B7-H1 Antigen - genetics; B7-H1 Antigen - metabolism; Cell Differentiation; Cell proliferation; Differentiation; GATA6 Transcription Factor - genetics; GATA6 Transcription Factor - metabolism; Homeostasis; Humanities and Social Sciences; Humans; Immunology; Interleukin 1; Interleukin 10; Interleukin-10 - genetics; Interleukin-10 - metabolism; Keratinocytes - cytology; Keratinocytes - metabolism; Keratinocytes - pathology; Lipids; multidisciplinary; Organoids; Pathogenesis; PD-L1 protein; Retinoic acid; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Sebaceous Glands - cytology; Sebaceous Glands - metabolism; Sebaceous Glands - pathology; Skin - cytology; Skin - metabolism; Skin - pathology; Skin diseases
• ISSN: 2041-1723; 2041-1723
• DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-18784-z

Although acne is the most common human inflammatory skin disease, its pathogenic mechanisms remain incompletely understood. Here we show that GATA6, which is expressed in the upper pilosebaceous unit of normal human skin, is down-regulated in acne. GATA6 controls keratinocyte proliferation and differentiation to prevent hyperkeratinisation of the infundibulum, which is the primary pathological event in acne. When overexpressed in immortalised human sebocytes, GATA6 triggers a junctional zone and sebaceous differentiation program whilst limiting lipid production and cell proliferation. It modulates the immunological repertoire of sebocytes, notably by upregulating PD-L1 and IL10. GATA6 expression contributes to the therapeutic effect of retinoic acid, the main treatment for acne. In a human sebaceous organoid model GATA6-mediated down-regulation of the infundibular differentiation program is mediated by induction of TGFβ signalling. We conclude that GATA6 is involved in regulation of the upper pilosebaceous unit and may be an actionable target in the treatment of acne. Although acne vulgaris is the most common human inflammatory skin disease, its pathogenic mechanisms remain incompletely understood. Here the authors show that GATA6 is involved in maintaining homeostasis of the upper pilosebaceous unit of human skin and may contribute to acne pathogenesis.