Loricrin, a protein expressed abundantly in the keratinizing epithelium, has been implicated in oral submucous fibrosis (OSF), a chronic disease affecting the oral cavity, caused mainly by areca nut chewing, which creates both mechanical and chemical stress on the oral epithelium. Loricrin is expressed in the stratified keratinized oral epithelium, and its decreased expression has been observed in different stages of OSF, potentially due to the epithelia's limited capacity to withstand continuous mechanical stress caused by areca nut chewing.
Loricrin is normally incorporated into the cornified envelope within 2 hours of synthesis in the differentiating keratinocyte the enhanced expression of extractable Loricrin (not cornified envelope incorporated) in protein extracts from OSF, indicates that it was a protective effect of oral mucosa against the persistently mechanical irritation of…
