IDENTIFICATION OF PROLIFERATIVE MELANOCYTE POPULATIONS

描述(来自应用程序)： 此应用程序的目的是为设计的研究提供支持 试图确定黑素细胞的可再生细胞群 黑素细胞前体细胞是否存在实质性增殖 势可以被隔离和传播。遗传病，如 眼皮肤白化与后天获得性白癜风等疾病特征 广泛的皮肤色素脱失，导致的发病率包括 增加对阳光的敏感度，更容易患皮肤癌。 此外，许多患有这些疾病的人在某些情况下 社会在文化上是被排斥的。这些疾病的治疗方法是 目前在很大程度上是无效的，目前的管理主要限于 预防措施。 治疗这些疾病的一种方法可能涉及转移 自体或非自体黑素细胞前体对这些人的影响 以促进它们的表皮与正常的黑素细胞重新繁殖。 在遗传性色素紊乱中，基因转移技术可能是有用的。 将患者体内突变基因的正常拷贝转移到 移植前的黑素细胞前体细胞。为了开发这些技术，它是 为了能够识别黑素细胞干细胞群体， 具有无限自我更新能力的人，或未分化的黑素细胞 在细胞培养中能够大量增殖的前体群体。 拟议的研究旨在识别这种细胞群体，研究 细胞在培养中持续生长的要求，并确定标记 将它们与成熟的黑素细胞区分开来，这可能有助于他们的 从成体中分离出来。 因此，这些研究将使用小鼠模型来鉴定黑素细胞干细胞 细胞和前体种群。黑素细胞的现有标志物 分化和转基因标记将被用来分离细胞 并研究它们在细胞培养中的增殖潜力。 改性剂对其增殖潜力的影响将是 检查过了。最后，针对这些细胞群体的特定标记将是 已确认身份。

DESCRIPTION (from the application): The purpose of this application is to provide support for studies designed to attempt to identify whether a renewable cell population for melanocytes exists and whether melanocyte precursors with substantial proliferative potential can be isolated and propagated. Inherited diseases such as oculocutaneous albinism and acquired diseases such as vitiligo feature extensive depigmentation of the skin, with resulting morbidity that includes increased sun sensitivity and a greater predisposition to skin cancer. Additionally, many people who suffer from these disorders in certain societies are culturally ostracized. Treatment for these conditions at present is largely ineffective, and current management restricted mainly to preventive measures. One approach to the treatment of these conditions may involve the transfer of autologous or non-autologous melanocyte precursors to these individuals to facilitate the repopulation of their epidermis with normal melanocytes. In inherited pigmentary disorders, techniques of gene transfer may be useful to transfer normal copies of genes mutated in the afflicted individual to melanocyte precursors prior to transfer. To develop these techniques, it is necessary to be able to identify either a melanocyte stem cell population, one capable of unlimited self-renewal, or an undifferentiated melanocyte precursor population capable of substantial proliferation in cell culture. The proposed studies are designed to identify such cell populations, study the requirements for continued cell growth in culture, and identify markers distinguishing them from mature melanocytes that may facilitate their isolation from the adult organism. Hence, these studies will employ a murine model to identify melanocyte stem cell and precursor populations. Existing markers of melanocyte differentiation and transgenic markers will be employed to isolate cells from murine embryos and study their proliferative potential in cell culture. The effects of modifying agents on their proliferative potential will be examined. Finally, markers specific for these cell populations will be identified.