Skin is the most voluminous organ of the body. It assumes several important 
physiological functions and represents also a "social interface" between an 
individual and other members of society. This is the main reason its 
age-dependent modifications are in the forefront of dermatological research and 
of the "anti-aging" cosmetic industry. Here we concentrate on some aspects only 
of skin aging, as far as the cellular and extracellular matrix components of 
skin are concerned. Most well studied mechanisms of skin aging can be situated 
at the postgenetic level, both epigenetic and post-translational mechanisms 
being involved. Some of these mechanisms will be reviewed as well as the 
capacity of fucose- and rhamnose-rich oligo- and polysaccharides (FROP and RROP) 
to counteract several of the mechanisms involved in skin aging.