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Updated: Aug 15, 2026

Generation and Culturing of Primary Human Keratinocytes from Adult Skin
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Generation and Culturing of Primary Human Keratinocytes from Adult Skin

Published on: December 22, 2017

Cytokeratins and dermatology

Claudio Jacques1, Adriana Moura de Aquino, Marcia Ramos-e-Silva

  • 1Department of Dermatology and Post-Graduate Course in Dermatology, School of Medicine, HUCFF-UFRJ, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil ramos.e.silva@dermato.med.br.

Skinmed
|November 9, 2005
PubMed

Cytokeratins are fibrous intermediate-filament protein polymers present in almost all animal cells. Their function is related to epithelium structural maintenance, protection from mechanical trauma, and possibly communication between adjacent cells or cytoplasm components. Today there are 20 known cytokeratins, classified according to their molecular weight and pH as type I or acidic (cytokeratins 9-20) and type II or neutral-basic (cytokeratins 1-8). Cytokeratins are always expressed in specific pairs for each type of tissue, composed of one unit of type I and one unit of type II. Primary structural defects of cytokeratins are associated with various keratinization impairments. Two of the better characterized defects are bullous epidermolysis and epidermolytic hyperkeratosis. Anti-cytokeratin monoclonal antibodies are being used for diagnostic purposes to characterize the origin of poorly differentiated tumors and metastatic solid tumors.

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