Skin and Connective Tissue Sciences – SCTS

Topics

• Biology and physiology of the skin and connective tissue, including extracellular matrix, microvasculature, and innervation. 
• Biology and physiology of skin appendages such as hair follicle, sebaceous and sweat glands.
• Structure and function of dermis and epidermis; skin barrier function, regulation, and transdermal drug delivery.
• Skin development, skin stem cells, skin homeostasis and aging. 
• Melanocyte biology and skin pigmentation. 
• Hereditary, inflammatory, and degenerative diseases of skin and connective tissues. 
• Disorders of skin and its appendages, including genetic, inflammatory, hyperproliferative, pre-neoplastic, blistering, and fibrotic disorders; systemic diseases with major cutaneous involvement, including atopic dermatitis, ichthyosis, keloids, fibrosis, pseudoxanthoma elasticum, and bullous diseases. 
• Mechanisms of skin injury, fibrosis and repair and the associated immune responses; skin wound healing, diabetic and pressure ulcers. 
• Pruritus and its mechanisms. 
• Stem cell-based therapies for skin and connective tissue diseases. 
• Skin interactions with the environment: UV and photobiology of the skin and their effects on skin biology.
• Skin microbiome and homeostatic responses.
• Skin microbial and fungal infection. Immune cell responses to infectious organisms in the skin. 

Shared Interests and Overlaps

There are shared interests with Musculoskeletal Tissue Engineering (MTE) in the investigation of skin repair. Applications that focus on tissue engineering aspects of skin repair and wound healing may be reviewed in MTE. Applications focusing on the biology and physiology of skin repair and wound healing may be reviewed in SCTS.

There are shared interests with Mechanisms of Autoimmunity (MAI) in skin and connective tissue-associated immune responses. Applications studying immune cells, immune mechanisms and/or responses, either innate or adaptive, in the context of skin-associated autoimmunity may be reviewed in MAI. Applications with focus on the pathophysiology of the skin, skin appendages and connective tissue in the context of autoimmune disease may be reviewed in SCTS.

There are shared interests with Immune Mechanisms of Hypersensitivity and Allergy (IMHA) in skin and connective tissue-associated immune responses. Applications studying immune cells, immune mechanisms and/or responses, either innate or adaptive, in the context of skin-associated hypersensitivities, allergic diseases (i.e. atopic dermatitis) may be reviewed in IMHA. Applications with a focus on the biology, physiology, development and homeostasis of the skin and skin appendages may be reviewed in SCTS. Applications that focus on the role of the microbiome in the modulation of skin-associated hypersensitivities and allergies may be reviewed in IMHA, whereas applications that focus on skin-localized microbiome homeostasis may be reviewed in SCTS. 

There are shared interests with Surgery, Anesthesiology and Trauma (SAT) in the investigation of skin and integument wound healing and tissue regeneration. Applications that focus on tissue/organ regeneration, and remodeling of damaged tissues, and novel therapeutic interventions for maintenance or restoration of tissue function may be assigned to SAT. Applications that focus on biology, physiology, development and homeostasis of the skin, and skin disorders including genetic, inflammatory, hyperproliferative, pre-neoplastic, blistering, and fibrotic disorders may be assigned to SCTS. 

There are shared interests with Radiation Therapeutics and Biology (RTB) in studying molecular and cellular events leading to UV-induced skin photobiology and carcinogenesis. Applications that focus on UV-induced skin carcinoma and melanoma development may be reviewed in RTB. Applications that focus on UV-induced photobiology of the skin and cellular factors and signaling pathways in keratinocytes and melanocytes may be reviewed in SCTS.

There are shared interests with Immunity and Host Defense (IHD) in the investigation of immune responses to skin infections. Applications focused on studying immune host defense against skin infections may be reviewed in IHD. Applications focused on the pathological consequences of immune responses to skin infections may be reviewed in SCTS.