A gene variant that produces red hair and fair skin in humans and in mice, which increases the risk of the dangerous skin cancer melanoma, may also contribute to the known association between melanoma and Parkinson's disease. Reseachers report that mice carrying the red hair variant of the melanocortin 1 receptor (MC1R) gene have reduced production of the neurotransmitter dopamine in the substantia nigra — the brain structure in which dopamine-producing neurons are destroyed in Parkinson's disease (PD) — and are more susceptible to toxins known to damage those neurons.

This work was published in Annals of Neurology. Inherited variants of the MC1R gene determine skin pigmentation, with the most common form leading to greater production of the darker pigment called eumelanin and the red-hair-associated variant, which inactivates the gene's function, increasing production of the lighter pigment called pheomelanin. Not only does pheomelanin provide less protection from ultraviolet damage to the skin than does eumelanin, but a previous study found it also may directly contribute to melanoma development.

While patients with Parkinson's disease have a reduced risk of developing most types of cancer, their higher-than-expected risk of melanoma is well recognized, as is the increased risk of PD in patients with melanoma.

The team's experiments showed that, in mice with the common form of MC1R, the gene is expressed in dopamine-producing neurons in the substantia nigra. The red-haired mice in which the gene is inactivated because of a mutation were found to have fewer dopamine-producing neurons and as they aged developed a progressive decline in movement and a drop in dopamine levels. They also were more sensitive to toxic substances known to damage dopamine-producing neurons and had indications of increased oxidative stress in brain structures adjacent to the substantia nigra. Treatment with a substance that increases MC1R signaling reduced the susceptibility of mice with the common variant to a neurotoxin, further supporting a protective role for the gene's activity.

Paper: “The melanoma-linked ‘redhead’ MC1R influences dopaminergic neuron survival”
Reprinted from materials provided by Massachusetts General Hospital.