Influence of aging on dermal elastin fiber architecture and skin firmness assessed by finite element modeling.

ABSTRACT: Skin firmness and elasticity are largely determined by the dermal extracellular matrix, particularly the elastin fiber network. Age-related degradation of elastin alters its architecture, contributing to diminished skin resilience. However, the quantitative relationship between elastin fiber geometry and macroscopic skin firmness remains incompletely understood. In this study, we developed a novel computational framework integrating realistic 3D elastin fiber geometries-extracted from confocal microscopy images of human abdominal skin samples (Caucasian females, aged 38-78 years)-into a finite element (FE) model of the dermal matrix. The elastin networks were explicitly represented as beam elements within the FE domain. Unconfined compression simulations were conducted to evaluate skin's e

SUBMITTER: Jiang F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12325628 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature