Genomic expression differences between cutaneous cells from red hair color individuals and black hair color individuals based on bioinformatic analysis

Joan Anton Puig-Butille*, Pol Gimenez-Xavier, Alessia Visconti, Jérémie Nsengimana, Francisco Garcia-García, Gemma Tell-Marti, Maria José Escamez, Julia Newton-Bishop, Veronique Bataille, Marcela del Río, Joaquín Dopazo, Mario Falchi, Susana Puig

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

6 Citations (Scopus)
224 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

The MC1R gene plays a crucial role in pigmentation synthesis. Loss-of-function MC1R variants, which impair protein function, are associated with red hair color (RHC) phenotype and increased skin cancer risk. Cultured cutaneous cells bearing loss-of-function MC1R variants show a distinct gene expression profile compared to wild-type MC1R cultured cutaneous cells. We analysed the gene signature associated with RHC co-cultured melanocytes and keratinocytes by Protein-Protein interaction (PPI) network analysis to identify genes related with non-functional MC1R variants. From two detected networks, we selected 23 nodes as hub genes based on topological parameters. Differential expression of hub genes was then evaluated in healthy skin biopsies from RHC and black hair color (BHC) individuals. We also compared gene expression in melanoma tumors from individuals with RHC versus BHC. Gene expression in normal skin from RHC cutaneous cells showed dysregulation in 8 out of 23 hub genes (CLN3, ATG10, WIPI2, SNX2, GABARAPL2, YWHA, PCNA and GBAS). Hub genes did not differ between melanoma tumors in RHC versus BHC individuals. The study suggests that healthy skin cells from RHC individuals present a constitutive genomic deregulation associated with the red hair phenotype and identify novel genes involved in melanocyte biology.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)11589-11599
Number of pages11
JournalOncotarget
Volume8
Issue number7
Early online date24 Dec 2016
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2017

Keywords

  • Autophagy
  • MC1R
  • Melanocyte
  • Melanoma
  • Red hair phenotype

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Genomic expression differences between cutaneous cells from red hair color individuals and black hair color individuals based on bioinformatic analysis'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this