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Porcine ear skin: an in vitro model for human skin
Ute Jacobi1, Marco Kaiser, Rani Toll
1Department of Dermatology, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany. ute.jacobi@charite.de
Background/Purpose:
Porcine ear skin is used in studies of percutaneous penetration as a substitute for human skin. The structure of this tissue, including hair follicles, was studied qualitatively and quantitatively in comparison with human skin.
Methods:
Sections of shock-frozen biopsies, biopsies embedded in paraffin and cyanoacrylate skin surface biopsies were investigated using microscopy. The thickness of the different skin layers and the follicular characteristics were determined.
Results:
The thickness of the stratum corneum was 17-28 microm, whereas the viable epidermis was 60-85 microm thick. On 1 cm(2), 11-25 hairs were detected, showing a diameter of 58-97 microm and a maximal extension depth of 0.96-1.38 mm into the skin. The orifices of the porcine infundibula showed a diameter of approximately 200 microm.
Conclusions:
The results obtained are similar to those of human skin, indicating the suitability of this porcine tissue as a model for human skin.
