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Review
. 2024 Aug 20:11:1440187.
doi: 10.3389/fmolb.2024.1440187. eCollection 2024.

The biochemistry of melanogenesis: an insight into the function and mechanism of melanogenesis-related proteins

Feifei Wang #  1   2   3   4 , Wenjing Ma #  1   4 , Dongjie Fan  1   4 , Jing Hu  1   4 , Xiaohong An  1   2   3   4 , Zuding Wang  1   2
Affiliations
Review

The biochemistry of melanogenesis: an insight into the function and mechanism of melanogenesis-related proteins

Feifei Wang et al. Front Mol Biosci. .

Abstract

Melanin is an amino acid derivative produced by melanocyte through a series of enzymatic reactions using tyrosinase as substrate. Human skin and hair color is also closely related to melanin, so understanding the mechanisms and proteins that produce melanin is very important. There are many proteins involved in the process of melanin expression, For example, proteins involved in melanin formation such as p53, HNF-1α (Hepatocyte nuclear factor 1α), SOX10 (Sry-related HMg-Box gene 10) and pax3 (paired box gene 3), MC1R(Melanocortin 1 Receptor), MITF (Microphthalmia-associated transcription factor), TYR (tyrosinase), TYRP1 (tyrosinase-related protein-1), TYRP2 (tyrosinase-related protein-2), and can be regulated by changing their content to control the production rate of melanin. Others, such as OA1 (ocular albinism type 1), Par-2 (protease-activated receptor 2) and Mlph (Melanophilin), have been found to control the transfer rate of melanosomes from melanocytes to keratinocytes, and regulate the amount of human epidermal melanin to control the depth of human skin color. In addition to the above proteins, there are other protein families also involved in the process of melanin expression, such as BLOC, Rab and Rho. This article reviews the origin of melanocytes, the related proteins affecting melanin and the basic causes of related gene mutations. In addition, we also summarized the active ingredients of 5 popular whitening cosmetics and their mechanisms of action.

Keywords: function; mechanism; melanin; melanocytes; melanogenesis; melanosomes.

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Conflict of interest statement

Authors FW, WM, DF, JH, XA, and ZW were employed by Yunnan Yunke Characteristic Plant Extraction Laboratory Co., Ltd. Authors FW, XA, and ZW were employed by Yunnan Botanee Bio-Technology Group Co., Ltd. Authors FW, WM, DF, JH, and XA were employed by Shanghai Jiyan Bio-Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. The authors declare that this study received funding from Yunnan Characteristic Plant Extraction Laboratory. The funder had the following involvement in the study: the decision to submit it for publication.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
The process of tyrosine derivative of melanin.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Proteins related to melanogenesis and melanosome transport.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
(A) Copper ions bind to tyrosinase and activate tyrosinase activity. (B) KA preemptively binds to copper ions by trapping copper ions, thereby inhibiting tyrosinase activity. (C) Arbutin binds to Emet and inhibits melanosome generation.
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4
Nicotinamide inhibits melanosome transport and AHA accelerates keratinocyte shedding.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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