Effect of puerarin on melanogenesis in human melanocytes and vitiligo mouse models and the underlying mechanism

In this study, we found that after treating with puerarin at various concentrations of 40 μmol/L, the melanin content of human melanocytes increased significantly and the apparent level of protein and the RNA levels of MITF, tyrosinase (TYR), and tyrosinase‐related protein 1 (TRP‐1) w ere also increased. Further, puerarin was shown to inhibit phosphorylation and activation of extracellular signal‐regulated kinase 1 and 2 (ERK1/2) without significantly affecting p38 and c‐Jun N‐terminal kinase phosphorylation. These results demonstrated that puerarin stimulated melanogenesis in human melanocytes via inhibition of ERK1/2 signaling pathways, which leads to upregulation of MITF and TYR as well as TRP‐1 subsequently. Additionally, mice vitiligo models with puerarin treatment showed lighter pathological changes. Therefore, we suggested that puerarin might be a potential m edicine for vitiligo.

Source: Phytotherapy Research - November 12, 2018 Category: Biochemistry Authors: Xiaoxia Ding, Enci Mei, Murong Hu, Chaofeng Zhou, Xiaobin Li, Lei Cai, Zhiming Li Tags: RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research