[HTML][HTML] The mutant form of lamin A that causes Hutchinson-Gilford progeria is a biomarker of cellular aging in human skin

D McClintock, D Ratner, M Lokuge, DM Owens… - PloS one, 2007 - journals.plos.org
D McClintock, D Ratner, M Lokuge, DM Owens, LB Gordon, FS Collins, K Djabali
PloS one, 2007journals.plos.org
Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome (HGPS, OMIM 176670) is a rare disorder
characterized by accelerated aging and early death, frequently from stroke or coronary
artery disease. 90% of HGPS cases carry the LMNA G608G (GGC> GGT) mutation within
exon 11 of LMNA, activating a splice donor site that results in production of a dominant
negative form of lamin A protein, denoted progerin. Screening 150 skin biopsies from
unaffected individuals (newborn to 97 years) showed that a similar splicing event occurs in …
Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome (HGPS, OMIM 176670) is a rare disorder characterized by accelerated aging and early death, frequently from stroke or coronary artery disease. 90% of HGPS cases carry the LMNA G608G (GGC>GGT) mutation within exon 11 of LMNA, activating a splice donor site that results in production of a dominant negative form of lamin A protein, denoted progerin. Screening 150 skin biopsies from unaffected individuals (newborn to 97 years) showed that a similar splicing event occurs in vivo at a low level in the skin at all ages. While progerin mRNA remains low, the protein accumulates in the skin with age in a subset of dermal fibroblasts and in a few terminally differentiated keratinocytes. Progerin-positive fibroblasts localize near the basement membrane and in the papillary dermis of young adult skin; however, their numbers increase and their distribution reaches the deep reticular dermis in elderly skin. Our findings demonstrate that progerin expression is a biomarker of normal cellular aging and may potentially be linked to terminal differentiation and senescence in elderly individuals.
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