| Research Abstract |
We have shown that melanocytes migrate from grafted epidermis into surrounding depigmented epidπermis in piebald white pathces. Further, we confirmed that the depigmented hairs became pigmented and melanocytes also migrate into the hair follicles (Pigment Cell Research, 12 : 175-180, 1999). Ras-transfected melanocyte study revealed that activated ras is involved in the induction of melanocyte migration (Pigment Cell Research, 11 : 182, 1998). We next showed that SHP-2, a tyrosine phosphatase, plays an important role in cell locomotion, using dominant negative mutant. (Oncogene, 19 : 75-84, 2000). We showed a melanoma antigen D-1 was specifically distributed in the melanoma tissues from melanoma patients (J Derm Sci, 17 : 115-122, 1998). We also found that IL-18 synergistically induces tumor rejection with IL-12 which is locally secreted by IL-12 transfected B-16 melanoma cells in vivo (Cancer Incest, in press). Using this IL-12 transfected melanoma cells, we showed that CD4ィイD2+ィエD2 Tcell depletion induce both melanoma rejection and vitiligo-like depigmentation (Pigment Cell Research, suppl. 7 : 27, 1999). In this regards, we found that IL-12 promotes accesary function of epidermal Langerhans cells (J Derm Sci, 18 : 98-108, 1998). Our findings will provide a useful information in establishing a new strategy of the treatment for depigmented disorders.
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