The dark side of melanin exposed: Sun worshippers may have more to worry about than the DNA damage that occurs while they're relaxing on the beach. It seems that the DNA photoproducts responsible for cancer-causing mutations in skin cells continue to be generated for hours after sunlight exposure. Premi et al. find that a key mediator of this delayed damage is melanin, a pigment thought to protect against cancer (see the Perspective by Taylor). They propose a “chemiexcitation” model in which reactive oxygen and nitrogen species induced by ultraviolet light excite an electron in melanin fragments. This energy is then transferred to DNA, inducing the same damage as ultraviolet light, but in the dark. Conceivably, this energy could be dissipated by adding quenchers to sunscreens. Science , this issue p. 842 ; see also p. 824

Okadaic acid is a polyether compound of a C38 fatty acid, isolated from a black sponge, Halichondria okadai. Previous studies showed that okadaic acid is a skin irritant and induces ornithine decarboxylase (OrnDCase; 3-hydroxyl-L-glutamate 1-carboxy-lyase, EC 4.1.1.17) in mouse skin 4 hr after its application to the skin. This induction was strongly inhibited by pretreatment of the skin with 13-cis-retinoic acid. A two-stage carcinogenesis experiment in mouse skin initiated by a single application of 100 micrograms of 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA) and followed by application of 10 micrograms of okadaic acid twice a week revealed that okadaic acid is a potent additional tumor promoter: tumors developed in 93% of the mice treated with DMBA and okadaic acid by week 16. In contrast, tumors were found in only one mouse each in the groups treated with DMBA alone or okadaic acid alone. An average of 2.6 tumors per mouse was found in week 30 in the group treated with DMBA and okadaic acid. Unlike phorbol 12-tetradecanoate 13-acetate (TPA), teleocidin, and aplysiatoxin, okadaic acid did not inhibit the specific binding of [3H]TPA to a mouse skin particulate fraction when added up to 100 microM or activate calcium-activated, phospholipid-dependent protein kinase (protein kinase C) in vitro when added up to 1.2 microM. Therefore, the actions of okadaic acid and phorbol ester may be mediated in different ways. These results show that okadaic acid is a non-TPA-type tumor promoter in mouse skin carcinogenesis.

Summary: Despite considerable advances in the past decade, melanin research still suffers from the lack of universally accepted and shared nomenclature, methodologies, and structural models. This paper stems from the joint efforts of chemists, biochemists, physicists, biologists, and physicians with recognized and consolidated expertise in the field of melanins and melanogenesis, who critically reviewed and experimentally revisited methods, standards, and protocols to provide for the first time a consensus set of recommended procedures to be adopted and shared by researchers involved in pigment cell research. The aim of the paper was to define an unprecedented frame of reference built on cutting‐edge knowledge and state‐of‐the‐art methodology, to enable reliable comparison of results among laboratories and new progress in the field based on standardized methods and shared information.

Summary: During the past decade, melanins and melanogenesis have attracted growing interest for a broad range of biomedical and technological applications. The burst of polydopamine‐based multifunctional coatings in materials science is just one example, and the list may be expanded to include melanin thin films for organic electronics and bioelectronics, drug delivery systems, functional nanoparticles and biointerfaces, sunscreens, environmental remediation devices. Despite considerable advances, applied research on melanins and melanogenesis is still far from being mature. A closer intersectoral interaction between research centers is essential to raise the interests and increase the awareness of the biomedical, biomaterials science and hi‐tech sectors of the manifold opportunities offered by pigment cells and related metabolic pathways. Starting from a survey of biological roles and functions, the present review aims at providing an interdisciplinary perspective of melanin pigments and related pathway with a view to showing how it is possible to translate current knowledge about physical and chemical properties and control mechanisms into new bioinspired solutions for biomedical, dermocosmetic, and technological applications.