NEW RESULTS WITH MELANODERM™, AN EPIDERMAL MODEL CONTAINING FUNCTIONAL MELANOCYTES.

• TR Number: 173
• Authors: Klausner, M., Neal, P., Breyfogle, B., Kubilus, J.Mattek Corp., Ashland, MA.Presented at the 1999 Annual Meeting of the Society of Investigative Dermatology, Chicago, IL.

We have previously reported on the successful incorporation of normal human melanocytes (NHM) into a highly differentiated, three-dimensional tissue culture model of human epidermis (JID, 104(4), 616, 1995). Melanocytes exhibited dendritic morphology, were localized in the basal cell layer, and converted 1-dopa to melanin. Previously, spontaneous pigmentation of the melanocytes could not be observed using light microscopy except in the presence of 1-dopa. However, recent improvements in the culture medium formulation now yield cultures in which melanin containing NHM can be observed as early as 10 days after seeding. Over a four week period, cultures become increasingly pigmented with retention of normal epithelial morphology. Cultures containing NHM derived from Black donors show increased pigmentation versus those containing Caucasian derived NHM; both types of cultures were distinctly darker than NHM-free cultures. These results suggest that this model will be useful to study melanogenesis, skin pigmentation, and other photobiological effects on skin in vitro.