Putting It All Together to Understand the Role of Malassezia spp. in Dandruff Etiology.

Dandruff is a common scalp condition causing both a discomfort and an undesired social image. Various studies dating from early 1900s have investigated the condition, but understanding of underlying mechanisms and etiology of the condition is still in its infancy. Formation of dandruff is a common but complex event which has been associated with numerous causal factors. Physiological conditions such as pH, water content, or sebum secretion are some of the host-related factors. An imbalance between these factors can disturb the physiological equilibrium of the scalp that can lead to dandruff formation. However, severity of the condition is strongly related to the lipophilic yeast of the skin microbiota, Malassezia spp. On the other hand, there are recent publications highlighting the role of other scalp microbiota members on dandruff formation. This review investigates the processes leading to the formation of dandruff to provide an etiological description of the condition, with a focus on Malassezia spp.

High prevalence of Demodex spp. infestation among patients with posterior blepharitis: correlation with age and cylindrical dandruff. / Alta prevalencia de infestación por Demodex spp. en pacientes con blefaritis posterior: correlación con edad y caspa cilíndrica.

OBJECTIVE: To determine prevalence of Demodex spp. and infestation index (II) by the parasite among patients of different ages with blepharitis and to assess association with occurrence of cylindrical dandruff (CC). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Prospective study including patients diagnosed with posterior blepharitis between 2013 and 2015, without previous acaricide treatment, was conducted by Fundación Oftalmológica Los Andes (Chile). Four eyelashes were randomly extracted from each eyelid for parasite detection. The II was calculated as the ratio between the total number of demodex specimens found in the total number of eyelashes removed. A semi-quantitative determination of the CC was performed. RESULTS: A total of 178 patients (91 men, 87 women), with a mean age of 58.49±20.66 years, were included. It was found that 83.7% of patients were infested with Demodex folliculorum with a mean II of 0.96±0.84 mites/eyelash. The II was significantly higher in patients over 50 years (p<.0001). Patient age and II showed a Pearson correlation coefficient (R2) of 0.12 (p<.0001). CC was observed in 71.4% of patients, with those over 50 years-old showing significantly higher values. A positive correlation was also observed between the amount of CC and the II (R2=.33; p<.0001). CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of infestation by Demodex folliculorum is high in patients with posterior blepharitis. The II by the parasite is positively correlated with age and with the occurrence of CC on the eyelid border.

A high glycerol-containing leave-on scalp care treatment to improve dandruff.

Dandruff is a common cosmetic condition associated with flaky scalp skin and pruritus. It is generally treated with regular use of antifungal-based shampoos. Research into factors underlying the characteristic skin lesions has revealed perturbations in epidermal differentiation and a dramatic deterioration in the associated process of stratum corneum (SC) maturation. These observations suggest that directly addressing the quality of the SC could have a scalp benefit. In this study, the authors investigated the efficacy of a moisturising leave-on lotion (LOL) containing a high concentration of glycerol (10%) and other known skin benefit agents (saturated fatty acid and sunflower seed oil) to reduce dandruff over an 8-week treatment period with 3 applications per week. Results of expert visual grading and biophysical measurements of SC parameters (transepidermal water loss and hydration) revealed a significant reduction in the dandruffcondition over this period, with significant improvement in both SC water barrier function and hydration. These scalp skin benefits were maintained for up to a week following cessation of the treatment. This study indicates that use of a glycerol-rich substantive LOL, designed to directly improve the quality of the SC barrier can have a significant impact on the dandruff condition.

Mammalian airborne allergens.

Historically, horse dandruff was a favorite allergen source material. Today, however, allergic symptoms due to airborne mammalian allergens are mostly a result of indoor exposure, be it at home, at work or even at school. The relevance of mammalian allergens in relation to the allergenic activity of house dust extract is briefly discussed in the historical context of two other proposed sources of house dust allergenic activity: mites and Maillard-type lysine-sugar conjugates. Mammalian proteins involved in allergic reactions to airborne dust are largely found in only 2 protein families: lipocalins and secretoglobins (Fel d 1-like proteins), with a relatively minor contribution of serum albumins, cystatins and latherins. Both the lipocalin and the secretoglobin family are very complex. In some instances this results in a blurred separation between important and less important allergenic family members. The past 50 years have provided us with much detailed information on the genomic organization and protein structure of many of these allergens. However, the complex family relations, combined with the wide range of post-translational enzymatic and non-enzymatic modifications, make a proper qualitative and quantitative description of the important mammalian indoor airborne allergens still a significant proteomic challenge.

Understanding the dandruff scalp before and after treatment: an in vivo Raman spectroscopic study.

OBJECTIVES: To study and characterize the stratum corneum (SC) of dandruff scalp using in vivo Raman spectroscopy, to study how it compares with the non-dandruff scalp and to see the effect of treatment with a zinc pyrithione (ZnPTO)-based anti-dandruff shampoo. METHODS: The scalp skin was measured using a recently developed in vivo Raman probe. This method allows the inherent molecular components of the SC to be measured in vivo and confocally with depth, in particular the levels of natural moisturizing factors (NMF), lipids, lactic acid, urea and water. RESULTS: Depth-profile data for the skin components in dandruff SC in vivo are shown for the first time. The dandruff SC has lower NMF than the non-dandruff SC (0.16 compared with 0.39 a.u.), lower hydration, elevated levels of urea and lower levels of lactic acid. Treatment with an anti-dandruff shampoo containing 1% ZnPTO substantially restores the levels of each of these components close to the non-dandruff levels. Further to this, it is shown that sebum penetrates deeper into dandruff SC and at higher levels compared with non-dandruff SC. The levels of sebum localized within the SC are also brought closer to those of the non-dandruff condition after ZnPTO treatment. CONCLUSION: The in vivo Raman probe has allowed the direct measurement of dandruff-affected skin in situ for the first time. It has been shown that the dandruff SC is different from that of the non-dandruff scalp and that it is changed by treatment with shampoo containing ZnPTO and brought towards the characteristics of non-dandruff scalp. It offers novel insights into how the nature of a healthy scalp should be defined.

[How I treat dandruff]. / Comment je traite éat pelliculaire.

Dandruff and seborrheic dermatitis form a continuum of desquamative conditions associated with the excessive colonization of the stratum corneum by yeasts of the genus Malassezia spp. Such colonization is heterogeneous in density, ranging from discrete to abundant according to the fungal ability to adhere to individual corneocytes. The rate of action of antidandruff shampoos shed some doubts about a direct antifungal effect, but rather suggests the involvement of innate immune defenses and the chemical alteration of molecular adhesion modalities between Malassezia and corneocytes.