Vitamin C Promotes Skin Renewal by Activating Key Genetic Pathways, Study

As the body’s primary barrier, the skin’s outer layer, the epidermis, naturally becomes thinner and less protective with age. Most of the epidermis is made up of keratinocytes, cells that form the skin’s protective barrier. Vitamin C (VC) has long been recognized for its benefits to skin health, but new research from Japan has uncovered how VC directly influences skin thickness by activating genes responsible for cell growth and renewal.

The study, published in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology, was led by Dr. Akihito Ishigami from Tokyo Metropolitan Institute for Geriatrics and Gerontology. The team explored VC’s effects on skin using  lab-grown models that closely resemble real skin.

Dr. Ishigami explains, “VC seems to influence the structure and function of epidermis, especially by controlling the growth of epidermal cells. In this study, we investigated whether it promotes cell proliferation and differentiation via epigenetic changes.” The researchers treated these models with VC at concentrations similar to those found in the human body. They observed that VC increased the thickness of the epidermal cell layer and promoted keratinocyte proliferation, as indicated by a higher number of Ki-67-positive cells.

The study found that VC supports skin cell growth by reactivating genes through DNA demethylation—a process that removes methyl groups from DNA, allowing gene expression. VC sustains the activity of TET enzymes, which are essential for this process. When TET enzyme function was blocked, the effects of VC were reversed, confirming this mechanism.

Overall, the findings show that VC can help restore skin thickness by promoting keratinocyte growth and gene activity, making it a promising approach for addressing thinning skin, particularly in older adults. Dr. Ishigami concludes, “We found that VC helps thicken the skin by encouraging keratinocyte proliferation through DNA demethylation, making it a promising treatment for thinning skin, especially in older adults.”