Considerations relationship between free radical generation by melanogenic and carcinogenicity risk

2014 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 24655159
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Chemistry related to living body
• Research Institution: Tohoku Institute of Technology
• Principal Investigator: TADA Mika 東北工業大学, 公私立大学の部局等, 准教授 (90375189)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): ITO Tomohiro 山形大学, 大学院理工学研究科, 准教授 (60361276)
• Project Period (FY): 2012-04-01 – 2015-03-31
• Keywords: free radical / 酸化ストレス / melanin / hydroxyl radical / tyrosinase / spin trapping / ESR / 抗酸化

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Exposure of ultraviolet irradiation to the skin causes detrimental cutaneous damages, which may result in photocarcinogenesis. Eumelanin has been found in almost every type of human skin, and synthesized in melanocytes located in the basal layer and hair bulbs transfers to keratinocytes. Eumelanin in keratinocytes acts as a photoprotector through body coloration and scavenging reactive oxygen species.Therefore, redox-related problems include lipid peroxidation, causing aging, DNA damage, increased inflammation levels, and finally a risk of carcinogenesis.
Since tyrosinase is an enzyme which contains dinuclear copper ions at the active site, dicopper-peroxide intermediates formed during the catalytic process of tyrosine to dopaquinone possibly decay to produce ･OH through an internal electron transfer from the ligand. In this study, we reported that importance of melanin-balance and mechanisms for decrease in risk of photocarcinogenesis by using antioxidative regents.

Free Research Field

生体関連化学