Beauty biology map
Epidermal cell turnover
divide in the basal layer and migrate outward, differentiating and finally shedding as . Kallikrein proteases and corneodesmosin degradation govern , and retinoid signalling is the best-characterised transcriptional lever on this programme.
drag to pan · hover to isolate a path · click a node for detail
Text alternative for this network
- Epidermal cell turnover associated with KRT14 — high confidence
- Epidermal cell turnover associated with KRT10 — high confidence
- Epidermal cell turnover associated with CDSN — high confidence
- Epidermal cell turnover associated with KLK5 — medium confidence
- Epidermal cell turnover associated with KLK7 — medium confidence
- Epidermal cell turnover associated with RARG — high confidence
- KRT14 participates in Formation of the cornified envelope — high confidence
- KRT10 participates in Formation of the cornified envelope — high confidence
- CDSN participates in Formation of the cornified envelope — high confidence
- KLK5 participates in Formation of the cornified envelope — medium confidence
- KLK7 participates in Formation of the cornified envelope — medium confidence
- RARG participates in Formation of the cornified envelope — high confidence
- KRT14 participates in Signalling by retinoic acid — high confidence
- KRT10 participates in Signalling by retinoic acid — high confidence
- CDSN participates in Signalling by retinoic acid — high confidence
- KLK5 participates in Signalling by retinoic acid — medium confidence
- KLK7 participates in Signalling by retinoic acid — medium confidence
- RARG participates in Signalling by retinoic acid — high confidence
- KRT14 participates in Keratinization — high confidence
- KRT10 participates in Keratinization — high confidence
- CDSN participates in Keratinization — high confidence
- KLK5 participates in Keratinization — medium confidence
- KLK7 participates in Keratinization — medium confidence
- RARG participates in Keratinization — high confidence
- Formation of the cornified envelope associated with Epidermal cell turnover — high confidence
- Signalling by retinoic acid associated with Epidermal cell turnover — high confidence
- Keratinization associated with Epidermal cell turnover — high confidence
- Formation of the cornified envelope associated with Desquamation — high confidence
- Signalling by retinoic acid associated with Desquamation — high confidence
- Keratinization associated with Desquamation — high confidence
- Formation of the cornified envelope associated with Keratinocyte proliferation — high confidence
- Signalling by retinoic acid associated with Keratinocyte proliferation — high confidence
- Keratinization associated with Keratinocyte proliferation — high confidence
Genes & proteins
Pathways
Formation of the cornified envelope
high confidenceTerminal programme.
Reactome R-HSA-6809371
Signalling by retinoic acid
high confidenceTranscriptional control of .
Reactome R-HSA-5362517
Keratinization
high confidenceexpression and assembly.
Reactome R-HSA-6805567
Ingredients studied here
- Retinol
- All-trans retinoic acid
- Retinaldehyde
- Salicylic acid
- Glycolic acid
- Lactic acid
- Niacinamide
- Hydroxypinacolone retinoate
Processes
- —
- —
- —
Research on this topic
Cosmetic retinoid esters: an assessment of available public evidence
Notes that public independent data on hydroxypinacolone retinoate are limited relative to retinol and retinoic acid.
Limitations — Review highlighting an evidence gap rather than reporting new results.
Urea in dermatology: hydration and keratolysis by concentration
Summarises concentration-dependent behaviour of urea, humectant at low percentages and keratolytic at higher percentages.
Limitations — Narrative review without quantitative synthesis.
Hydroxypinacolone retinoate: receptor binding without prior conversion
Reported direct retinoic acid receptor binding for the ester, in contrast to retinol which requires cutaneous conversion.
Limitations — Binding assays only; no controlled human comparison against retinol; identifier not verified during curation.
Mandelic acid versus glycolic acid peels for facial pigmentation: a comparative study
Reported similar pigmentation improvement between the two acids, with fewer irritation events in the mandelic acid arm.
Limitations — Small, unblinded, investigator-graded; identifier not verified during curation.
Benzoyl peroxide, alone and combined, in inflammatory acne: a systematic review
Reported consistent reduction in inflammatory lesion counts versus vehicle, with dose-related local irritation.
Limitations — Heterogeneous trials and concentrations; identifier not verified during curation.
Retinoic acid receptor expression and retinoid signalling in human skin
Summarises RAR/RXR heterodimer signalling as the transcriptional mechanism of retinoid action in epidermis and dermis.
Limitations — Narrative review; mechanistic focus without effect-size synthesis.
Salicylic acid: mechanism of action in the pilosebaceous unit
Describes lipophilic partitioning into sebaceous follicles and reduced corneocyte cohesion as the principal described mechanisms.
Limitations — Review; mechanistic detail at the protein level remains incomplete.
Oxidative decomposition of benzoyl peroxide in skin and follicular microbiology
Reported rapid decomposition to benzoic acid with radical-mediated, non-selective antibacterial activity and no observed resistance selection.
Limitations — Microbiological models; identifier not verified during curation.
Salicylic acid keratolysis and corneocyte cohesion in human stratum corneum
Reported reduced corneocyte cohesion and increased desquamation with salicylic acid exposure in isolated stratum corneum.
Limitations — Ex-vivo tissue only; identifier not verified during curation.
Glycolic acid peels and epidermal thickness: a controlled split-face study
Reported increased epidermal thickness and improved texture scores on the treated side after a series of glycolic acid applications.
Limitations — Small sample, investigator-graded endpoints; identifier not verified during curation.
Retinaldehyde: cutaneous conversion to retinoic acid and tolerability in human skin
Summarises evidence that retinaldehyde is oxidised in skin to retinoic acid, with reported tolerability intermediate between retinol and tretinoin.
Limitations — Narrative review; identifier not verified during curation.
Retinoid receptor selectivity of adapalene and downstream keratinocyte transcription
Reported preferential RAR-beta and RAR-gamma binding with associated changes in keratinocyte differentiation markers.
Limitations — Cell models only; identifier not verified during curation.
Alpha hydroxy acids: effects on stratum corneum cohesion and epidermal thickness
Reported reduced corneocyte cohesion and increased epidermal thickness after repeated glycolic acid application.
Limitations — Historical study; identifier not verified during curation; pH and concentration not standardised across arms.
Adapalene 0.1% gel versus tretinoin 0.025% gel in acne vulgaris: a randomised trial
Reported comparable lesion-count reduction with adapalene and tretinoin, with less irritation in the adapalene group.
Limitations — Acne endpoints only, not photoageing; identifier not verified during curation.
Community evidence
Submitted by readers
Reader submissions appear here only after review. They are not part of the curated dataset and do not affect the Skinceptor Evidence Index.
No approved community submissions yet.
Sources
- Reactome R-HSA-6805567Verified 2026-09-14
- UniProt Q15517Verified 2026-09-14