Hydrolyzed Conchiolin Protein Inhibits Dendrite Formation of Melanocytes Via Wnt/β-catenin Signaling Pathway

作者：Zang, Kai; Xu, Ziheng; Wang, Runxuan; Ye, Xiyun^*; Dang, Yongyan^*

来源：JOURNAL OF COSMETIC SCIENCE, 2023, 74(3): 158-172.

Synopsis Soluble pearl extracts present the potential in inhibiting melanin synthesis in B16 melanoma cells. However, the role of hydrolyzed conchiolin protein (HCP), the main protein ingredient in soluble pearl extracts, in skin lightening remains unclear. In this study, we observed that HCP effectively inhibited endothelin-1 (ET-1) induced melanocyte dendrite formation in both PIG1 and MelanA cells, demonstrating its excellent antagonistic properties against ET-1 in.melanosome transfer. HCP also exhibits the capability to reduce ET-1-induced melanin secretion in MelanA cells. HCP also significantly suppressed the upregulation of microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF), tyrosinase (TYR), Rab27a, and Rac1 gene expression. Additionally, HCP treatments led to a notable reduction in the protein expression levels of p-GSK-3(3, (3-catenin, as well as the nuclear translocation of (3-catenin. Importantly, HCP exhibited low toxicity towards MelanA and PIG1 cells. Our results indicate that HCP can effectively suppress melanin transfer in melanocytes by antagonizing ET-1 and that HCP treatments can downregulate melanin synthesis or transfer-related gene expression by inhibiting Wnt/(3-catenin signaling pathway. HCP may emerge as a safe candidate for treating skin pigmentation disorder in the future.