Norwich Skin Platform Inflammation Model (NSPinflam)

What is it?

We have developed NSPinflam, a prototype inflammatory skin disease assay. We have discovered that with ex vivo exposure of human skin to a mix of inflammatory cytokines, in NSPinflam, we can overcome some of the challenges to modelling these disorders in tissue culture.

Our ability to establish up to 150 skin explant samples (healthy skin tissue, surplus to surgery), from each donor gives us scalability with room for parallel testing to achieve reliable data outputs.

NSPinflam is an excellent system for testing pharmaceuticals/nutriceuticals for anti-inflammatory effects. We assess these effects by morphometric analysis of epidermal thickening and by transcriptomics with validation by qRT-PCR.

Topical treatments for atopic dermatitis (AD), a chronic inflammatory skin condition affecting up to 20% of children in the UK, include creams to prevent dehydration as well as steroids, which are effective but over-use can have detrimental effects on skin integrity including thinning. People with atopic dermatitis can have reduced quality of life and may be more susceptible to viral and bacterial infections. Human ex-vivo/in vitro models are important for understanding aspects of atopic dermatitis and reconstituted skin as well as in whole skin explants.