2014 Fiscal Year Final Research Report
Effects of Varp on the activation of melanocytes
| Project/Area Number |
24570206
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
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| Allocation Type | Multi-year Fund |
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| Section | 一般 |
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| Research Field |
Cell biology
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| Research Institution | Tohoku University |
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Principal Investigator |
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| Project Period (FY) |
2012-04-01 – 2015-03-31
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| Keywords | 色素細胞 / メラニン / 突起形成 / 低分子量Gタンパク質 |
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| Outline of Final Research Achievements |
Melanin helps protect human beings from harmful ultra-violet exposure, but the excess production of melanin causes skin stains and freckles, therefore regulating the amount of melanin in skin is essential for maintaining quality of life. Melanocytes are known as melanin-producing cells and activated upon UV stimulation to transfer melanosomes that contain melanin toward the neighboring keratinocytes and hair matrix cells. This research demonstrated that one of the guanine nucleotide exchange factors, named Varp, activates Rab21 to elongate melanocytic dendrites, which facilitates the transfer of melanin from melanocytes to neighboring keratinocytes.
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| Free Research Field |
細胞生物学
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