Skin Microbiome in Healthy Ageing (SMiHA)

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The skin is the largest organ of the body and is home to a community of microbiota which generally live in harmony with our human selves. Babies acquire their skin microbiome at birth. This highly specialised and diverse community that exist on all skin sites as well as in the gut, actually provide protection from infection by maintaining a friendly microbe shield against the invasion of pathogenic species into the body. Our 'skin microbiome' is therefore very important to our health and wellbeing. Interestingly evidence shows that this microbial community becomes altered with age - and our skin microbiome composition has been found to be quite an accurate measure of our physical age. The skin also changes as we get older, and this varies according to the body site with skin thinning, dryness and changes in natural oils. The substantial hormonal changes that accompany the menopause cause noteworthy alterations in both the skin and its microbiome that can have significant consequences for female health, such as more frequent urinary tract infections. The very elderly can suffer with chronically infected wounds which are resistant to treatment, while eczema in children is made much worse due to the altered microbiome in the lesions. Our challenge is to make progress in linking skin microbiome to health ageing through our network and to translate this into innovations in everyday products by working with industry partners, to maintain the resilience and health of our skin throughout our whole lives.