Doctors from the Kimberly and Eric J. Waldman Department of Dermatology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have found a new way to study seborrheic dermatitis (SD), a common skin condition that causes itchy, red, and flaky skin, especially on the scalp, face, and chest.
According to their research, published in the June issue of Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, the Mount Sinai team used sticky tape—rather than a painful biopsy—to collect skin cells from 28 adults with seborrheic dermatitis. Dermatologists have used tape stripping for other conditions for years, but this is the first time it has been applied to identify immune and lipid changes in patients with SD.
The special tape works a bit like a sticky note—it gently pulls off the top layer of skin without hurting the patient. When scientists look closely at what is on the tape, they can see tiny clues about what is happening under the surface.
In this study, they found that certain immune signals, called interleukins, were very active in the skin of people with seborrheic dermatitis. Interleukins are a type of cytokine, a group of proteins that act as chemical messengers between cells, particularly white blood cells, to regulate immune responses. These signals can cause the body to overreact and create inflammation.
The researchers found that the changes in the immune systems of people with seborrheic dermatitis are similar to those in people with psoriasis, another skin condition, but also have their own special patterns. This is the largest transcriptomic study (study of the full range of messenger RNA) to date on seborrheic dermatitis.
"Seborrheic dermatitis is a common and chronic inflammatory skin disease that causes itching and scaling on the face, scalp, chest, and skin folds, affecting up to 5 percent of adults," says lead author Emma Guttman-Yassky, MD, PhD, Waldman Professor and Chair of the Kimberly and Eric J. Waldman Department of Dermatology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. "We were able to analyze the molecular skin profile of adult patients with SD using tape strips. Until now, our understanding of the disease has been limited because studying it required invasive skin biopsies. This is the largest transcriptomic study to date on seborrheic dermatitis, and for the first time, we were able to use simple, minimally invasive tape strips to uncover the immune pathways driving the disease—specifically interleukin 23, T-helper 17, and T-helper 22 responses. This breakthrough opens the door to developing more targeted, effective treatments for patients."
Right now, many people with this skin condition use creams that can have side effects. This new research gives hope for new medicines that could help people feel better faster, with fewer risks.
"Tape strips are less invasive than biopsies, which are the gold standard but can be painful and intrusive, making them less than ideal for young or sensitive patients," said Benjamin Ungar, MD, Director of the Alopecia Center of Excellence and Director of the Rosacea and Seborrheic Dermatitis Clinic at the Kimberly and Eric J. Waldman Department of Dermatology at Mount Sinai. "This new research is exciting because we used a noninvasive method (tape) to identify unique immune responses, and that will allow us to better understand seborrheic dermatitis."
Dr. Guttman and Dr. Ungar led a team from various national and international institutions. Arcutis Biotherapeutics, Inc., helped fund this research. With support from the Icahn School of Medicine Clinical Translational Science Award (UL1TR004419) TL-1 program.
To read the full manuscript and see the full list of contributors visit: https://www.jaad.org/article/S0190-9622(25)00180-X/fulltext
