Restoration of Keratinocyte Homeostasis Drives Resolution of Skin Inflammation

Abstract Chronic skin inflammation is sustained by reciprocal interactions between epidermal dysfunction and immune activation, yet whether epithelial state actively governs restoration of tissue homeostasis remains unclear. Using a murine model of inflammatory skin disease, we modulated epidermal lipid metabolism and examined its effects on tissue organization. Transcriptomic profiling revealed coordinated reversal of inflammatory, metabolic, and structural gene programs accompanied by normalization of epidermal architecture. Single-cell RNA sequencing showed that this remodeling was concentrated in differentiated keratinocytes, with suppression of IL-17 and neutrophil-associated responses and restoration of barrier and mitochondrial-lipid programs, while stromal and myeloid compartments displayed secondary adaptation. Cross-species analysis demonstrated that resolution-associated gene networks are inversely regulated in human psoriasis. Integrated proteomic and transcriptomic analyses further identified a conserved epithelial regulatory triad whose concordant regulation in psoriasis and atopic dermatitis, and whose in vivo silencing, establish mechanistic control of disease severity. Together, these findings indicate that inflammatory resolution reflects reorganization of epidermal transcriptional networks and position epithelial state as a determinant of inflammatory persistence. Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest.