Evidence mapPaperPMID 38062074Full record

ArticleScientific reports2023

Emodin exhibits anti-acne potential by inhibiting cell growth, lipogenesis, and inflammation in human SZ95 sebocytes.

Si Liu, Xiao-Hua Luo, Yu-Feng Liu, Christos C Zouboulis, Ge Shi

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Scientific reports, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
7citing papers in PubMed
4.8field-weighted citation impact, top 5% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

7 citing papers in PubMed, 17 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
  2. Review
  3. Anthraquinones fromDrug design, development and therapy · 2025
    Review
  4. Article
  5. Review
  6. Review
  7. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.

Si Liu *Department of Cosmetic and Plastic Surgery, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China.
Xiao-Hua Luo *Department of Cosmetic and Plastic Surgery, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China.
Yu-Feng LiuDepartment of Cosmetic and Plastic Surgery, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China.
Christos C ZouboulisDepartments of Dermatology, Venereology, Allergology and Immunology, Staedtisches Klinikum Dessau, Brandenburg Medical School Theodor Fontane and Faculty of Health Sciences Brandenburg, Dessau, Germany.
Ge ShiDepartment of Cosmetic and Plastic Surgery, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China. shig9@mail.sysu.edu.cn.
Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University · CNMedizinische Hochschule Brandenburg Theodor Fontane · DESun Yat-sen University · CN

Funding

the National Natural Science Foundation of China 81773345
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Emodin, a natural anthraquinone derivative, possesses anti-proliferative and anti-inflammatory properties in skin diseases. However, little information is available on the efficacy of emodin in treating acne vulgaris (acne). This study aims to investigate the protective effects and potential mechanisms of emodin as an anti-acne agent. In vitro, SZ95 sebocytes was chose to establish an acneigenic cellular model. We found that emodin effectively inhibited proliferation, induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis of SZ95 sebocytes in a dose-dependent manner. To evaluate the lipid-lowering potential of emodin, we examined the levels of lipid contents and lipogenic transcription factors, and found that both lipid production and protein expression of PPARγ, LXR α/β, and SREBP-1 were decreased after treatment with emodin. Furthermore, our results revealed that emodin inhibited sebaceous lipogenesis induced by insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), which was accompanied by a potent inhibition of the phosphoinositide-3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt/forkhead box protein O1 (FoxO1) pathway. In detail, emodin augmented the inhibitory effect of isotretinoin and PI3K inhibitor LY294002, while attenuating the activation of IGF-1 on PI3K/Akt/FoxO1 pathway. In addition, emodin could decrease the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-6 and IL-8, and suppress the expression of NLRP3, capase-1, IL-1β, and IL-18 in SZ95 sebocytes exposed to Cutibacterium acnes. Overall, our study provides preliminary evidence supporting the anti-growth, anti-lipogenic and anti-inflammatory properties of emodin, indicating the potential therapeutic application of emodin for acne treatment.

Indexed as

Acne VulgarisEmodinAnti-Inflammatory AgentsCell ProliferationHumansInflammationInsulin-Like Growth Factor ILipidsLipogenesisPhosphatidylinositol 3-KinasePhosphatidylinositol 3-KinasesProto-Oncogene Proteins c-aktSebaceous GlandsSignal TransductionAnti-Inflammatory AgentsEmodinInsulin-Like Growth Factor ILipidsPhosphatidylinositol 3-KinasePhosphatidylinositol 3-KinasesProto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt

Identifiers

PMID38062074
PMCPMC10703917
OpenAlexW4389445364

What Socratic holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.