Lipofuscyna

Lipofuscyna is an alternative spelling sometimes used for lipofuscin, a yellow-brown autofluorescent pigment granule that accumulates in cells over time. In modern English scientific usage, lipofuscin is the more common term, but lipofuscyna appears in older texts and in some languages as a variant form.

Lipofuscyna forms as a byproduct of cellular degradation. It results from imperfect lysosomal digestion of damaged organelles and long-lived cellular components, often driven by oxidative stress and lipid peroxidation. The pigment is a complex, consisting of lipid-containing residues of proteins and other macromolecules, sometimes incorporating metals. Its autofluorescence allows it to be detected by fluorescence microscopy.

The pigment tends to accumulate in postmitotic cells that persist for long periods, such as neurons, cardiac myocytes, and retinal pigment epithelium. In histology, lipofuscyna appears as granular, brownish inclusions within the cytoplasm. In the retina, lipofuscin is particularly notable in the retinal pigment epithelium and includes components such as A2E, a retinoid-derived fluorophore that can contribute to light-induced damage.

Biological significance is primarily as a biomarker of aging and cumulative oxidative stress, reflecting reduced lysosomal efficiency and autophagic activity. While high levels of lipofuscin have been associated with age-related diseases and neurodegenerative conditions in some studies, the pigment itself is not generally considered a primary causative factor; rather, it marks cellular aging and stress.

Measurement and research use typically rely on its autofluorescence and histological appearance. Lipofuscyna serves as a historical or linguistic variant of lipofuscin in comparative literature and multilingual contexts.