Melanogenic Activity Facilitates plasmacytoid Dendritic Cell Maturation

According to epidemiological research, autoimmune diseases are more prevalent among African Americans, therefore we hypothesized that pigment production in the microenvironment contribute to local immune regulation. Here, in an in vitro setting we examined the role for pigment production by murine epidermal melanocytes in immune and inflammatory responses via DC activation. Our results revealed that dark pigmented melanocytes increase the production of IL-3 and the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-6 and TNF-a, and consequently they induce pDC maturation. Further, we found that low pigment associated FMOD interferes with cytokine secretion and subsequent pDC maturation. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to assess the effect of baseline pigmentation on epidermal melanocyte cytokine profile, and its impact on DCs.