Binary organization of epidermal basal domains highlights robustness to environmental exposure

Adulte interfollicular epidermis (IFE) renewal is likely orchestrated by physiological demands of its complex tissue architecture comprising spatial and cellular heterogeneity. Mouse tail and back skin display two kinds of basal IFE spatial domains that regenerate at different rates. Here, we elucidate the molecular and cellular states of basal IFE domains by marker expression and single-cell transcriptomics in mouse and human skin. We uncover two paths of basal cell differentiation that in part reflect the IFE spatial domain organization. We unravel previously unrecognized similarities between mouse tail IFE basal domains defined as scales and interscales versus human rete ridges and inter-ridges, respectively. Furthermore, our basal IFE transcriptomics and gene targeting in mice provide evidence supporting a physiological role of IFE domains in adaptation to differential UV exposure. We identify Sox6 as a novel UV-induced and interscale/inter-ridge preferred basal IFE-domain transcription factor, important for IFE proliferation and survival. The spatial, cellular, and molecular organization of IFE basal domains underscores skin adaptation to environmental exposure and its unusual robustness in adult homeostasis.