DERMAL STEM CELLS & TISSUE REGENERATION A Hemidesmosomal Protein Regulates Actin Dynamics and Traction Forces in Motile Keratinocytes Knockdown of either collagen XVII or actinin4 not only inhibited directed migration of keratinocytes but also relieved constraints on actin bundle retrograde movement at the site of lamella, such that actin bundle movement is enhanced more than five-fold. [FASEB J] Abstract Enhanced Cutaneous Wound Healing In Vivo by Standardized Crude Extract of Poincianella pluviosa The crude extract (CE) from bark of P. pluviosa was evaluated in the wound-healing process in vivo, to validate the traditional use and the in vitro activity. The effects of the CE on wound re-epithelialization; cell proliferation; permeation, using photoacoustic spectroscopy; and proteins, including vascular endothelial growth factor, superoxide dismutase 2 and cyclooxygenase 2 were evaluated. [PLoS One] Full Article Multiscale Approach to Characterize Mechanical Properties of Tissue Engineered Skin Tissue engineered skin usually consists of a multi-layered visco-elastic material composed of a fibrillar matrix and cells. The complete mechanical characterization of these tissues has not yet been accomplished. The purpose of this study was to develop a multiscale approach to perform this characterization in order to link the development process of a cultured skin to the mechanical properties. [Ann Biomed Eng] Abstract SKIN CANCERS & DISORDERS Exceptional Antineoplastic Activity of a Dendritic-Cell-Targeted Vaccine Loaded with a Listeria Peptide Proposed against Metastatic Melanoma Researchers proposed a dendritic cell-targeted vaccine loaded with a Listeria peptide with exceptional anti-tumor activity to prevent metastasis of melanoma. [Oncotarget] Full Article Activation of hERG3 Channel Stimulates Autophagy and Promotes Cellular Senescence in Melanoma Scientists have found that pharmacologic stimulation of the Kv11.3 channel with a small molecule activator, NS1643 induced autophagy via activation of an AMPK-dependent signaling pathway in melanoma cell line. [Oncotarget] Full Article Inhibition of the STAT3 Signaling Pathway Contributes to Apigenin-Mediated Anti-Metastatic Effect in Melanoma The authors showed that apigenin suppressed murine melanoma B16F10 cell lung metastasis in mice, and inhibited cell migration and invasion in human and murine melanoma cells. [Sci Rep] Full Article Somatic Copy Number Amplification and Hyperactivating Somatic Mutations of EZH2 Correlate with DNA Methylation and Drive Epigenetic Silencing of Genes Involved in Tumor Suppression and Immune Responses in Melanoma The authors used an integrated systems biology approach to analyze 471 cases of skin cutaneous melanoma in The Cancer Genome Atlas for mutations and amplifications of EZH2. They found that EZH2 activation by mutations, gene amplification and increased transcription occurred in about 20% of the cohort. [Neoplasia] Abstract | Press Release MicroRNA-155 Is Dysregulated in the Skin of Patients with Vitiligo and Inhibits Melanogenesis-Associated Genes in Melanocytes and Keratinocytes Of 12 studied microRNAs with proven functions in cell proliferation, differentiation, immune responses and melanogenesis, miR-99b, miR-125b, miR-155 and miR-199a-3p were found to be increased and miR-145 was found to be decreased in the skin of patients with vitiligo. [Acta Derm Venereol] Abstract |