Microarray analysis sheds light on the dedifferentiating role of agouti signal protein in murine melanocytes via the Mc1r.

ABSTRACT: The melanocortin-1 receptor (MC1R) is a key regulator of pigmentation in mammals and is tightly linked to an increased risk of skin cancers, including melanoma, in humans. Physiologically activated by alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone (alphaMSH), MC1R function can be antagonized by a secreted factor, agouti signal protein (ASP), which is responsible for the lighter phenotypes in mammals (including humans), and is also associated with increased risk of skin cancer. It is therefore of great interest to characterize the molecular effects elicited by those MC1R ligands. In this study, we determined the gene expression profiles of murine melan-a melanocytes treated with ASP or alphaMSH over a 4-day time course using genome-wide oligonucleotide microarrays. As expected, there were significant

SUBMITTER: Le Pape E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2644118 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature