Matriptase regulates proliferation and early, but not terminal, differentiation of human keratinocytes

Genetic defects in matriptase are linked to two congenital ichthyoses: autosomal recessive ichthyosis with hypotrichosis (ARIH, OMIM 610765) and ichthyosis, follicular atrophoderma, hypotrichosis, and hypohidrosis (IFAH, OMIM 602400). Mouse models with matriptase deficiency indicate an involvement of matriptase in suprabasal keratinocytes in the maintenance of the epidermal barrier. In contrast to what has been reported for mouse skin, we show that in human skin matriptase is primarily expressed in the basal and spinous keratinocytes, but not in the more differentiated keratinocytes of the granular layer. In addition, matriptase zymogen activation was predominantly detected in the basal cells. Furthermore, by using skin organotypic cultures as a model system to monitor the course of human epidermal differentiation, we found elevated matriptase zymogen activation during early stages of epidermal differentiation, coupled with a loss of matriptase expression in the late stages of this process. We also show here that matriptase deficiency in HaCaT cells modestly reduces cell proliferation and temporally affects calcium-induced expression of differentiation markers. These collective data suggest that, unlike mouse matriptase, human matriptase may be involved in the regulation of keratinocyte growth and early differentiation, rather than terminal differentiation, providing mechanistic insights into the pathology of the two congenital ichthyoses: ARIH and IFAH.