Molecular switch controls melanin production, may allow true sunless tanning

Discovery of a molecular switch that turns off the natural process of skin pigmentation may lead to a novel way of protecting the skin - activating the tanning process without exposure to cancer-causing UV radiation. In their report in the journal Genes and Development, researchers from the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Cutaneous Biology Research Centre (CBRC) describe how blocking the action of this switch - an enzyme called PDE-4D3 - in the skin of mice led to a significant increase in melanin production...

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