Abstract

UV radiation is a major environmental risk factor for the development of melanoma by causing DNA damage and mutations. Resistance to UV damage is largely determined by the capacity of melanocytes to respond to UV injury by repairing mutagenic photolesions. The nucleotide excision repair (NER) pathway is the major mechanism by which cells correct UV photodamage. This multistep process involves the basic steps of damage recognition, isolation, localized strand unwinding, assembly of a repair complex, excision of the damage‐containing strand 3′ and 5′ to the photolesion, synthesis of a sequence‐appropriate replacement strand, and finally ligation to restore continuity of genomic DNA. In melanocytes, the efficiency of NER is regulated by several hormonal pathways including the melanocortin and endothelin signaling pathways. Elucidating molecular mechanisms by which melanocyte DNA repair is regulated offers the possibility of developing novel melanoma‐preventive strategies to reduce UV mutagenesis, especially in UV‐sensitive melanoma‐prone individuals.

Document Type

Review

Publication Date

5-2017

Notes/Citation Information

Published in Pigment Cell & Melanoma Research, v. 30, issue 3, p. 284-293.

© 2017 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd

The copyright holder has granted the permission for posting the article here.

This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Jarrett, S. G., Carter, K. M., D'Orazio, J. A. (2017). Paracrine regulation of melanocyte genomic stability: a focus on nucleotide excision repair. Pigment Cell & Melanoma, 30(3), 284-293, which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1111/pcmr.12582. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

https://doi.org/10.1111/pcmr.12582

Funding Information

We are grateful for support from the National Cancer Institute (R01 CA131075), the Melanoma Research Alliance (MRA) and the Regina Drury Endowment for Pediatric Research. We also acknowledge the technical support of the Markey Research Communications Office and NCI Cancer Center Support Grant (P30 CA177558) of the Markey Cancer Center at the University of Kentucky.

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