• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.34 no.6
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• pp.510-516
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• 2021

Whitening agents derived from natural sources which do not have side effects are sought after. Schizophragma hydrangeoides is an edible plant that grows wild on Jeju Island. We aimed to determine whether S. hydrangeoides extracts show anti-melanogenic activity. Here, we found that 70% ethanol extracts of S. hydrangeoides leaf suppressed α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone-induced melanogenesis in B16F10 mouse melanoma cells. This activity of anti-melanogenesis in B16F10 cells were investigated by determining melanin content and tyrosinase activity, and by performing western blotting. The 70% ethanol extract downregulated tyrosinase and tyrosinase-related protein 1. In addition, the n-hexane fraction of S. hydrangeoides leaf (HFSH) exhibited significant anti-melanogenic activity among the various solvent fractions tested without reducing the viability of B16F10 cells. Taken together, these results indicate that extracts from S. hydrangeoides leaf can influence cellular processes via modulation of tyrosinase activity. Hence, S. hydrangeoides can be used as a whitening agent in the cosmetic industry and as a therapeutic agent for treating hyperpigmentation disorders in the clinic.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.35 no.6
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• pp.704-712
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• 2022

Research on whitening materials using natural alternatives is actively being conducted. The aim of this study was to investigate the in vitro inhibitory effects of Ranunculus chinensis Bunge (RCB) on melanogenesis and associated enzymes, such as tyrosinase, tyrosinase-related protein (TRP)-1, and TRP-2 in B16F10 murine melanoma cells. We found that RCB extract significantly attenuated melanin synthesis and reduced the activity of intracellular tyrosinase, a rate-limiting melanogenic enzyme. Western blot analysis showed that RCB extract decreased the protein expression of tyrosinase and TRP-1. In addition, it significantly decreased the expression of microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF), a key regulator of melanogenesis. Extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) activation has been reported to be involved in the inhibition of melanogenesis. Thus, we investigated whether the hypopigmentary effects of RCB extract were related to the activation of ERK. RCB extract induced ERK phosphorylation in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, it markedly inhibited body pigmentation in a zebrafish model. Our results suggest that RCB extract inhibits melanogenesis by activating ERK pathway-mediated suppression of MITF and its downstream target genes, including tyrosinase. Therefore, RCB extract can be used as a whitening agent in the development of functional cosmetics.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.747-753
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• 2004

Effects of methanolic extract from Adenophorae Radix (AR) on melanogenesis were investigated in mouse melanoma B16F10 cells. The methanol extract of AR was partitioned into Hexane, Ethyl acetate (EA), Butanol, H₂O, and exogenously added to the culture medium for 72 hours at the concentration of 10, 50, 100 and 200 ㎍/㎖. Of the four partitions, Hexane and EA partion of AR reduced tyrosinase activity, which is the key enzyme for a melanogenesis, as well as melanin contents. But the EA partition was less toxic for B16F10 cells and has more efficient melanin-reducing effect than the former. In addition, the EA partition dramatically lightened the color of cell pellet and significantly decreased the level of tyrosinase protein expression. In these results, EA partition of AR reduced melanin synthesis of B16F10 mouse melanoma cells by down regulating the tyrosinase activity and tyrosinase protein expression. Therefore, it is anticipated that AR is a candidate for an efficient whitening agent which supresses melanogenesis.

• Journal of Embryo Transfer
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.107-117
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• 2018

The purpose of this study is to expression pattern of melanogenesis associate genes on cultured melanocyte layer cells in Korean Brindle Cattle(Dark, Brindle and Yellow) were analyzed to evaluate the effects of sex hormones on the control of melanogenesis pathways. Korean Brindle Cattle(Dark, Brindle and Yellow) melanocyte in the skin cells was collected. after the addition of estrogen and testosterone, the culture was analyzed for expression of cell activity and melanin genes for 72 hours. For the analysis of estrogen in different coat color other than the melanogenesis-related genes it is increasingly yellow showed low expression. in particular, the cells of the brindle coat color is low active and expression of genes. However, the testosterone was low, the expression of cell activity inhibiting MMP-2. the expression of melanin genes actually showed a tendency to increase gradually, which is testosterone compared with the estrogen to be considered that affect the skin cell layer brindle coat color. In this study, stimulation with estrogen triggered the inhibition of MC1R of the melanocyte in brindle coat color, but testosterone is induced MC1R in melanocyte. Therefore, considered the eumelanin or phaeomelanin activation are controlled caused by differential expression of sex hormones on melanocyte in Korean Brindle Cattle.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.440-445
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• 2004

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of Adenophorae Radix (AR) on melanogenesis of B16F10 mouse melanoma cells. The cells were treated for 5 days with AR at several concentrations. Treatment with AR suppressed melanin contents as a dose dependent manner without cytotoxicity and morphological change. And the extract of AR also inhibited tyrosinase activity, a key enzyme forming melanin, in a dose-dependent manner, Treatment of the cells with Adenophorae Radix also suppressed the increase of α-MSH (10 nM)-induced melanin contents and tyrosinase activity. These results suggest that AR inhibits melanogenesis and abrogates α-MSH-induced melanogenesis in B16 melanoma cells.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.1-13
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• 1994

An antioxidative compound was isolated from pine needles. This compound was identified as 4-hydroxy-5-methyl-3[2H]-furanone on the basis of spectroscopic evidences. It scavenged 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl free radicals more efficiently than maltol and tocopherol did. It exhibited an inhibitory effect on the lipid peroxidation of rat liver microsome induced by Fe(ll)/ascorbate, and the protective effect against UV cytotoxicity in cultured human fibroblasts. In addition, HMF appeared to prevent the cellular melanogenesis in the cultured murine melanoma cells, more effectively than kojic acid, a well known inhibitor of melanogenesis, while the former was not so effective as the latter for the inhibilion of the tyrosinase. Considering that cellular melanogenesis is a metabolic process triggered by oxidative stress, it was tentatively deduced that the antioxidative property of HMF may afford the effect against cellular pigmentation by alleviating the causative stress. This study provided a novel inhibitor of melanogenesis, that might be useful for the cosmetic applications.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.349-354
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• 2007

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of vanillic acid on the cell viability and melanogenesis in melanocytes damaged by reactive oxygen species (ROS). The human skin melanoma cells (SK-MEL-3) were cultured with various concentrations of hydrogen peroxide $(H_2O_2)$. The cell viability for $H_2O_2$-induced cytotoxicity or vanillic acid against $H_2O_2$ was measured by XTT assay in these cultures. For the effect of vanillic acid on the melanogenesis, the tyrosinase inhibitory activity was measured by colorimetric assay at a wavelength of 490 nm, and melanin synthesis activity were assessed after cells were cultured in the media with or without various cencentrations of vanillic acid. In this study, $H_2O_2$ decreased cell viability dose- and time-dependent manners and $XTT_{50}$ was determined at a concentration of 80 ${\mu}M$, $H_2O_2$. Vanillic acid increased the cell viability dose dependently in human skin melanoma cells damaged by $H_2O_2$-induced cytotoxicity. In the tyrosinase inhibitory activity, vanillic acid supresssed tyrosinase activity in dosedependent manner, and also decreased significantly melanin synthesis activity compared with $H_2O_2$-treated group. From these results. It is suggested that $H_2O_2$-mediated cytotoxicity was highly by the toxic criteria of Borenfreund and Puerner and also, vanillic acid has the protective effect on ROS-induced cytotoxicity and melanogenesis in these cultures.

• Archives of Pharmacal Research
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• v.26 no.10
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• pp.840-845
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• 2003

Temperature change is one of the major environmental factors that influence the human skin. However, the relationship between temperature and melanogenesis has received little attention. In the present study, we investigated the effects of temperature change on melanogenesis in a mouse melanocyte cell line (Mel-Ab), and primary cultured human melanocytes. We found that Mel-Ab cells cultured at low temperatures (31 and 34$^{\circ}C$) produce less melanin than cells at 37$^{\circ}C$. These results were confirmed by experiments upon human melanocytes, demonstrating that the hypopigmenting effect of low temperatures is not cell type dependent. The observed melanin production was found to be accompanied by tyrosinase activity at each temperature, indicating that tyrosinase activity is regulated by temperature. We further examined whether the incubation period at low temperatures plays an important role in the regulation of melanogenesis. Short exposures to 27$^{\circ}C$ for 1 h or 3 h did not affect tyrosinase activity or melanin synthesis, whereas long exposures to 31$^{\circ}C$ for 2 days or 6 days significantly reduced tyrosinase activity and melanin synthesis in a duration-dependent manner. Our results suggest that exposure to low temperature and the duration of this exposure are important regulators of melanogenesis.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.135-149
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• 2002

To date, research on the regulation of melanogenesis has focused on factors which affect tyrosinase, the rate-limiting enzyme in the melanogenic pathway, by searching for chemicals which competitively inhibit tyrosinase function. Many types of tyrosinase inhibitors have been developed, but no satisfactory results have been made clinically until now, To find a new whitening agent, which effectively inhibits melanogenesis, we synthesized several compounds and selected compounds by cell-based assay system. Finally, 3, 4, 5-trimethoxy cinnamaie thymol ester(TCTE, Melasolv) was selected and the effects of TCTE on melanogenesis were investigated. Treatment of mouse-derived melanocyte melan-a cells with TCTE results in a marked down-regulation of tyrosinase activity. 80% decrease of tyrosinase activity occurs with 30uM TCTE treatment for 72 hours without affecting cell growth. The inhibition of tyrosinase activity is dose-dependent and melanin content was also decreased to 40%. From the in vitro tyrosinase assay using cell extract, TCTE does not act as a direct inhibitor of the enzyme. Treatment of melan-a cultures with TCTE blocks the increase in tyrosinase activity by either forskolin, 3-isobutyl-1-methtyl-xanthine. TCTE decreased the expression of tyrosinase, TRP-1 without effects on TRP-2 protein expression through the down regulation of tyrosinase and TRP-1 mRNA. From the results of cAMP immunoassays, intracellular levels of the cyclin nucleotide are unaffected in cells treated with TCTE. The inhibitory effects of melanin synthesis were also shown in reconstitute human epidermis model by topical application. These findings suggest that TCTE can be used for studying the regulation of melanogenesis and depigmenting agent.

• Food Science and Preservation
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• v.18 no.6
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• pp.998-1001
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• 2011

Angelica keiskei is a perennial herb belonging to the Umbelliferae family. In this study, the whitening effect of A. keiskei extracts was examined through melanogenesis and tyrosinase inhibitory assays. The ethanol extract (50%) significantly inhibited tyrosinase in a concentration-dependent manner. RT-PCR revealed that the extract exhibited decreased expression of tyrosinase, tyrosinase-related protein-1, tyrosinase-related protein-2, and melanocyte-inducing transcription factor. These results suggest that the extract can be used as an ingredient for the development of cosmeceuticals.