Cryogenic probe technology enables multidimensional solid-state NMR of the stratum corneum without isotope labeling

Solid-state NMR has great potential for investigating molecular structure, dynamics, and organization of the stratum corneum, the outer 10–20 μm of the skin, but is hampered by the unfeasibility of isotope labelling as generally required to reach sufficient signal-to-noise ratio for the more informative multidimensional NMR techniques. In this preliminary study of pig stratum corneum at 35 °C and water-free conditions, we demonstrate that cryogenic probe technology offers sufficient signal boost to observe previously undetectable minor resonances that can be uniquely assigned to fluid cholesterol, ceramides, and triacylglycerols, as well as enables ¹H–¹H spin diffusion monitored by 2D ¹H-¹³C HETCOR to estimate 1–100 nm distances between specific atomic sites on proteins and lipids. The new capabilities open up for future multidimensional solid-state NMR studies to answer long-standing questions about partitioning of additives, such as pharmaceutically active substances, between solid and liquid domains within the protein and lipid phases in the stratum corneum and the lipids of the sebum.