Intelligent bioengineering in vitiligo treatment: transdermal protein transduction of melanocyte-lineage-specific genes

Abstract

Vitiligo is a common, incurable skin disease with a prevalence of about 1%. Although many vitiligo therapies are available in clinics, there is almost no one method that causes significant improvement in all vitiligo patients. Some have hypothesized that melanocyte dysfunction or deficiency underlies the loss of skin pigmentation observed in vitiligo. The autoimmune-mediated apoptosis of melanocytes might be an important part of the etiology of vitiligo, which prevents the formation of melanocytes in the skin. Here we propose a novel hypothesis for vitiligo treatment using in situ melanocyte regeneration induced by melanocyte-lineage-specific genes (MLSGs). This may serve as an intelligent bioengineering prototype. The hypothesis is based on the fact that MLSGs regulate melanocyte differentiation through epigenetic reprogramming, which includes microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF), paired box 3 (PAX3), and Notch signaling. MITF directs the terminal differentiation of melanocytes, and PAX3 helps to establish the properties of the melanocyte stem cells. Notch signaling promotes adult stem cell proliferation and self-renewal. This process could be mimicked by Notch intracellular domain (NICD). MLSGs could also stimulate anti-apoptotic gene expression. Recent improvements in relevant biotechniques allow the transdermal delivery of MLSG proteins into the patient, where they enter cells through protein transduction. This process may promote melanocyte regeneration in situ with little impact on the hair follicular cycle or on carcinogenesis. This simple and efficient treatment may have significant impact on the treatment of vitiligo patients.