ScienceDaily (Oct. 14, 2010) — The 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 & Development, researchers from the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Cutaneous Biology Research Center (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.
