Novel nanosome delivery system combined with siRNA targeting the antimicrobial gene DFB4: A new approach for psoriasis management?

In a recently published issue of the journal, Bracke et al. demonstrate an impressive improvement in psoriasiform features in allogeneic human skin grafts transplanted onto immune-deficient mice. This improvement was achieved using a novel nanosome (SECosome) as a vehicle for delivering topically applied siRNA to human epidermis. Targeting the gene DFB4 with this delivery system, they prevented translation of the antimicrobial peptide, human β defensin-2(hBD2), thus normalizing the psoriasiform epidermal phenotype of siRNA/SECosome-treated human skin grafts. This study encourages the exploration of topical gene silencing strategies in dermatology and refocuses our attention on both, the role of hBD2 in psoriasis pathogenesis and the thorny question which animal model reflects human psoriasis most faithfully.