Increased PHGDH Expression Uncouples Hair Follicle Cycle Progression and Promotes Inappropriate Melanin Accumulation

    January 2018 in “ bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) ”
    Katherine Mattaini, Mark R. Sullivan, Allison N. Lau, Brian P. Fiske, Roderick T. Bronson, Matthew G. Vander Heiden
    Studysummary This study developed a mouse model to mimic PHGDH gene copy number gain, finding that increased PHGDH expression leads to abnormal melanin production, which may offer insights into its role in melanoma.
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    The study investigated the effects of increased PHGDH expression, a gene involved in serine biosynthesis, using a mouse model with inducible PHGDH expression. The results showed that increased PHGDH expression led to inappropriate melanin accumulation in early-stage hair follicles (anagen II) without altering the overall hair follicle cycle timing. This was accompanied by an increase in melanocyte abundance. These findings suggested that PHGDH expression might influence melanocyte proliferation or differentiation, providing insights into its role in normal melanocyte biology and its frequent copy number gain in melanoma compared to other cancers.
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