Men may have less natural antioxidant protection in the skin than women

Researchers at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center may explain why men are three times more likely than women to develop a common form of skin cancer. They have found that male mice had lower levels of an important skin antioxidant than female mice and higher levels of certain cancer-linked inflammatory cells.

The antioxidant, a protein called catalase, inhibits skin cancer by mopping up hydrogen peroxide and other DNA-damaging reactive-oxygen compounds that form during exposure to ultraviolet B light (UVB), a common source of sunburn and cancer-causing skin damage. Studies by others have linked low catalase activity to skin cancer progression.

The findings suggest that women may have more natural antioxidant protection in the skin than men.

The research is published online in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology.