title: Melanocytes in human skin express bcl-2 protein.
abstract: The bcl-2 gene was initially identified through its participation in the translocation 14:18 in B-cell lymphomas of follicular center cell origin. This classic translocation juxtaposes the transcriptionally active immunoglobulin heavy-chain locus on chromosome 14 to the bcl-2 gene on chromosome 18, resulting in overexpression of bcl-2 protein. The oncogene bcl-2 is thought to prolong cell survival through interference with programmed cell death. To date, bcl-2 expression has been reported in normal lymphoid, hemopoietic, neural, breast and prostatic tissues. Since melanocytes are neural crest derivatives and have an extended life-span, our objective was to determine whether the bcl-2 protein is expressed in human melanocytes. We analyzed normal skin biopsies for bcl-2 expression using standard immunohistochemistry. As hypothesized, dendritic cells in the basal epidermal layer stained strongly for bcl-2. The distribution and morphology of these cells was typical for melanocytes. Additionally, eccrine sweat glands, lymphocytes and the dermal papilla of hair follicles demonstrated bcl-2 positivity. We believe this to be the first report of bcl-2 expression in normal melanocytes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Vancouver General Hospital, University of British Columbia, Canada.
authors.forename: H A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Klein-Parker
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Warshawski
authors.forename: V A
authors.initials: VA
authors.lastname: Tron
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D007124:Immunoenzyme Techniques; D008544:Melanocytes / Q000737:chemistry*; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000032:analysis*; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2; D012867:Skin / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2