Articles techniques et présentations

To better quantify the impact of the morphological and mechanical properties of the main constituents of the stratum corneum (SC, the outermost layer of the skin) on its overall mechanical behavior, we developed a biomechanical model of the SC at a cellular scale, based on in vitro morphological and mechanical data. The sensitivity analysis quantified the relative impact of the mechanical and morphological properties of the SC main constituents on the overall mechanical properties. These simulated data were then injected in a multi-layer biomechanical model of the skin in order to evaluate the impact of SC mechanical properties. An increase of SC stiffness induces deeper folds, indicating a possible contribution of the SC dryness to the observed evolution of wrinkling behavior with aging.