What are the basics of Melanin Synthesis?
Melanin is the pigment that largely determines skin color, and is synthesized by the melanocytes in the basal layer of the epidermis. There are two melanin pigments, eumelanin and pheomelanin. Eumelanin is black and pheomelanin is yellow. The ratio of these two pigments in the skin determines how dark or light the skin will be. The synthesis of eumelanin and pheomelanin requires the amino acid tyrosine and the enzyme Tyrosinase. Tyrosinase catalyzes the conversion of tyrosine into biochemical intermediates dopa and dopaquinone. Dopaquinone is the precursor of both eumelanin and pheomelanin in the process of melanogenesis, the biochemical processes, which synthesize the melanins. Differences in the ratio of melanin pigments create wide variations in human skin color, ranging from light to dark skin color. Thus, darker skinned individuals have a higher Eumelanin to pheomelanin ratio. To lighten skin, Dr. THIENNA’s system causes dopaquinone to be diverted towards the production of pheomel
