Cellular, immunohistochemical and proteomic characterisation of human acrosyringial cells

Human skin is a multi-layer, multi-cellular integumentary organ containing a variety of appendages such as hair follicles, sebaceous glands, apocrine sweat glands and eccrine sweat glands. It performs a wide range of functions including protection against external physical, chemical or biological agents, prevention of excess water loss from the body and thermoregulation. As part of its thermoregulatory function, the eccrine gland secretes sweat to the surface of the skin for cooling through evaporative heat loss. The eccrine gland is made up of three distinct subunits – the secretory coil and resorptive duct in the dermis and the acrosyringium in the epidermis, emerging at the surface of the skin through the stratum corneum. While there has been a considerable amount of work performed on the structure and function of the secretory coil and resorptive duct, relatively little is known about the acrosyringium in cellular, metabolic and compositional terms. However, disease states such as eccrine porocarcinoma, transient acantholytic dermatosis (Grover’s disease) and palmoplantar pustulosis are all caused through disorders of acrosyringial cells. Equally, clinical and cosmetic products which target the reduction in underarm sweating are postulated to work within the acrosyringial portion of the eccrine unit. Therefore, in order to fully understand the function and potential dysfunction of this crucial appendage of the skin it is vitally important to have a greater understanding of its cellular make up and proteomic composition, particularly at the luminal surface. This studentship will take a multidisciplinary approach to develop a deeper understanding of both the cellular nature of the acrosyringium and the proteomic composition of its luminal surface.