Human β-defensin-2 and psoriasin, two new innate immunity targets of zinc gluconate.

Background: Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are a large family of peptides implicated in innate immunity, especially in the epidermis. Zinc gluconate has been proven to be efficient to treat inflammatory dermatoses, such as acne vulgaris.

Objectives: The aim of our work was to determine whether AMPs could be new targets of zinc gluconate treatment in inflammatory dermatoses.

Zinc gluconate is an agonist of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-α in the epidermis.

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors-α (PPARs-α) are nuclear receptors with anti-inflammatory properties. Zinc gluconate is efficient in the treatment of several inflammatory dermatoses. The aim of our work was to determine whether the modulation of PPAR-α expression and activity could be one of the mechanisms of action of zinc gluconate anti-inflammatory activity in inflammatory dermatoses.