Trunk neural crest (NC) cells differentiate to neurons, melanocytes, and glia. In NC cultures, cyclic AMP (cAMP) induces melanocyte differentiation while suppressing the neuronal sympathoadrenal lineage, depending on the signal intensity. Melanocyte differentiation requires activation of CREB and cAMP-dependent protein kinase A (PKA), but the role of PKA is not understood. We have demonstrated,...

The aim of this study was to describe and analyze the regulation and spatio-temporal dynamics of melanocyte migration in vitro and its coupling to cell division and interaction with the matrix. The melanocyte lineage is particularly interesting because it is involved in both embryonic development and oncogenesis/metastasis (melanoma). Biological experiments were performed on two melanocyte cell...

Melanocytes in the skin are derived from the embryonic neural crest. Recently, mutations in endothelin 3 and the endothelin receptor B genes have been shown to result in gross pigment defects, indicating that this signalling pathway is required for melanocyte development. We have examined the effects of endothelins on melanocyte progenitors in cultures of mouse neural crest. Firstly, they stimu...

The microphthalmia transcription factor (Mitf) activates melanocyte-specific gene expression, is critical for survival and proliferation of melanocytes during development, and has been described as an oncogene in malignant melanoma. SWI/SNF complexes are ATP-dependent chromatin-remodeling enzymes that play a role in many developmental processes. To determine the requirement for SWI/SNF enzymes ...

Hair graying is an obvious sign of human aging, yet little was known about its causes. Two recent papers provide compelling evidence that hair graying is due to incomplete melanocyte stem cell maintenance and identify Pax3 and Mitf as key molecules that help regulate the balance between melanocyte stem cell maintenance and differentiation.

The objective of the present studies was to develop and validate a system for isolation, purification and extended culture of pigment-producing cells in alpaca skin (melanocytes) responsible for coat color and to determine the effect of alpha melanocyte stimulating hormone treatment on mRNA expression for the melanocortin 1 receptor, a key gene involved in coat color regulation in other species...

BACKGROUND The understanding of cutaneous pigmentation biology is relevant from the biologic and clinical point of view. The binding of alpha-melanocortin and its specific receptor, on the plasma membrane of melanin synthesising cells, plays a crucial role in melanins biosynthesis. Furthermore, loss of MC1R function is associated with an increased incidence of melanoma and non-melanoma skin can...

Mutations in SOX10 cause neurocristopathies which display varying degrees of hypopigmentation. Using a sensitized mutagenesis screen, we identified Smarca4 as a modifier gene that exacerbates the phenotypic severity of Sox10 haplo-insufficient mice. Conditional deletion of Smarca4 in SOX10 expressing cells resulted in reduced numbers of cranial and ventral trunk melanoblasts. To define the requ...

Background: The Ink4a-Arf tumor suppressor locus encodes two growth inhibitors, p16 and Arf, both of which are also implicated as effectors in cellular senescence. Because human germline defects in the INK4A-ARF locus are associated with familial melanoma, melanocytes may have unusual INK4A-ARF functions or controls of cell senescence. Because senescence is believed to be an anticancer mechanis...

Clinical and histopathological observations suggest that the pathogenesis of cutaneous melanoma evolves through multiple stages . It has been proposed that early stages are characterized by benign proliferation of melanocytic cells and later stages by acquisition of competence for invasion and metastasis (1) . The recognition that dysplastic nevi are a class of pigmented lesions with potential ...