Avon says its researchers have discovered why skin develops wrinkles and lines as we age—and is working to combat the phenomenon. The team of research scientists from Avon’s Skincare Institute (ASI) presented what they say is a new breakthrough in anti-aging skin care at the Summer Conference of The American Academy of Dermatology. Dr. John Lyga, director of skin bioscience and Dr. Uma Santhanam, director of cell biology and clinical efficacy at ASI explained that their team has solved a key piece of the skin aging puzzle in their presentation of two posters, “Dynein is Necessary for Intracellular Transport of Both Nutrients and Autophagosomes in Human Dermal Fibroblasts” and “A role for Autophagy in Skin Aging.”
 
In researching why skin develops lines and wrinkles and loses firmness as we age, the team first focused on a key transporter protein called dynein, which plays a critical role in transporting nutrients as well as mitochondria, the “powerhouses” within cells, to where they are needed, keeping skin cells productive and functioning optimally. The team discovered that the level of dynein in skin cells declines with age and that a deficiency of dyneins caused an impairment in the transport of nutrients within skin cells, which can contribute to increased signs of aging on the skin’s surface.
 
Avon scientists also focused on autophagy, a pathway by which cells remove and recycle damaged components, and a phenomenon that is being heavily researched in the medical field. Avon scientists discovered that this activity also declines with age and UV exposure. Since dynein also plays a role in the recycling process, the decrease in dynein may contribute additionally to the impairment in waste disposal.
 
Furthermore, researchers found that suppression of the recycling pathway results in a reduction of collagen production. Thus, a decline in two critical cellular processes with age, namely nutrient transport and cellular recycling, could contribute the sub-optimal functioning of skin cells, which in turn could result in the appearance of signs of aging such as lines and wrinkles and loss of firmness.