Hormone may prompt tan and protection

Fair-skinned people take note: Someday, there may be a way to protect against sunburn and get a healthy, skin-protecting tan at the same time. Researchers at the University of Arizona say they have found a way to use a synthetic hormone to reduce skin damage in people with sensitive skin.

The study, published last week in the Archives of Dermatology, found that the synthetic hormone could be combined safely with short exposures to sunlight or UV-B light to get a darker tan -- and more melanin in the skin, said Dr. Robert Dorr, professor of pharmacology at the University of Arizona.

Usually, “people go out into the sun, get a little sun damage, and then that damage signals the production of melanin,” which darkens and protects the skin, he said. The study used Melanotan-1, a synthetic version of a pigmentation hormone found in animals and in pregnant women. The hormone can darken skin and produce melanin without sunlight.

The 11 people who participated in the study received daily injections of the hormone for two weeks. The next step, Dorr said, will be to develop a time-release injection that could be given every few months at a dermatologist’s office.

The study was funded by a grant from the National Cancer Institute. Dorr has worked as a consultant for EpiTan, an Australian-based dermatological products firm that has the sole rights to develop MT-1.

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Daffodil J. Altan