JLE

European Journal of Dermatology

MENU

Hairless guinea pig skin: anatomical basis for studies of cutaneous biology Volume 10, issue 5, July - August 2000

Figures

See all figures

Authors
Department of Dermatology, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA.

In order to characterize the microscopic anatomy of hairless guinea pig (HL-GP) skin, we utilized light microscopy with a computer-assisted image analysis system, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). SEM revealed that the hair shafts of HL-GPs were thin, short, extremely irregular in diameter and often twisted and curled. The HL-GP epidermis was of similar thickness to that of human skin with distinct strata, serrated/non-serrated basal keratinocytes and shallow dermal papillae. The density of Langerhans cells in epidermal sheets, visualized by adenosine-s-triphosphatase staining, was similar to that of normal-haired guinea pigs (HD-GPs), although the dendrites of HL-GPs were thicker and shorter than those of HD-GPs. The dermal vasculature of HL-GPs was well-developed and similar to that of humans, demonstrating a network of vertically oriented capillary loops. HL-GPs had significantly more dendritic or spindle-shaped dermal interstitial cells than humans and HD-GPs. Collectively, these data suggest that HL-GP skin is more similar to human skin than to the skin of HD-GPs and other rodents and, therefore, the HL-GP may be a useful animal for studying cutaneous biology, experimental pathology, pharmacology and toxicology.