The Clonal Growth Behavior of Melanocytes Derived From Melanocyte Stem Cells in Glabrous Skin

Abstract

Melanocyte stem cells (MSCs) play crucial roles in the pigmentation of human skin and hair, but methods to isolate and culture them are not well characterized. In our study, we cultured melanocytes derived from human fetal hair follicles and from glabrous adult foreskins. Three kinds of culture methods were employed, namely, via conventional enzyme digestion and cultivation, culture on a matrigel matrix and tissue culture. The results show that a special population of melanocytes occurred in primary cultures, which differed from mature epidermal melanocytes. Those cells displayed bipolar or tripolar phenotypes, proliferated very rapidly and their growth patterns resembled schools of fishes. Immunohistochemical staining with the HMB-45 antibody confirmed that these cells were indeed melanocytes. We speculate that these melanocytes in clone-like growth patterns may have derived from MSCs or their progenies, which exist not only in the bulge region of hair follicles but also within the epidermis and/or dermis of glabrous skin.