title: Hairless guinea pig skin: anatomical basis for studies of cutaneous biology.
abstract: 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.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA. hirsueki@med.showa-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sueki
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gammal
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kudoh
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Kligman
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D006168:Guinea Pigs / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D008297:Male; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D012867:Skin / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000648:ultrastructure