Abstract: LI Qi-lin, HE Dan-hua, NIU Mu, HUANG Yong-hua, LU Xiao-juan. Department of Dermatology, Fourth Affiliated Hospital of Jinan University/Guangzhou Red Cross Hospital, Guangzhou 510220, China Corresponding author: LI Qi-lin, Email: qlli_cn@163.com 【Abstract】 Objective To evaluate the effect of tacalcitol on the proliferation, adhesion, migration and c-kit mRNA expression of cultured human epidermal melanocytes. Methods Cultured epidermal melanocytes from the prepuce of adolescent males were treated with various concentrations of tacalcitol. Then, cell proliferation was evaluated by tetrazolium salt （XTT） assay after 24, 48 and 72 hours of treatment, adhesive activity by using fibronectin-coated culture plates after 72 hours, migratory activity by Transwell assay using a microporous membrane after 24 hours, and the c-kit mRNA expression was semiquantitatively analyzed by reverse transcription PCR after 72 hours of treatment. Statistical analysis was done by repeated-measure analysis of variance and completely random design analysis of variance. Results As repeated-measure analysis of variance showed, tacalcitol of 10-10, 10-9, 10-8, 10-7 and 10-6 mol/L significantly promoted the proliferation of melanocytes （F = 9.47, P < 0.01）, with significant differences in the promoting effect among various durations of treatment with different concentrations of tacalcitol （F = 14.44, P < 0.01）, and with significant interaction effect between drug concentration and treatment duration （F = 2.47, P < 0.01）. The highest proliferation level was observed in melanocytes treated with tacalcitol of 10-8 mol/L for 72 hours. There was a significant increase in the adhesion rate of human epidermal melanocytes to fibronectin after treatment with tacalcitol of 10-8 － 10-7 mol/L for 72 hours（both P < 0.01）, number of melanocytes migrating through micropore membranes per high-power field （× 200） after treatment with tacalcitol of 10-9 － 10-8 mol/L for 24 hours （both P < 0.01）, and in the c-kit mRNA expression in melanocytes treated with tacalcitol of 10-9 － 10-7 mol/L for 72 hours （all P < 0.01）. Conclusion Tacalcitol can promote melanocytes to proliferate, migrate, express c-kit mRNA, and adhere to fibronectin. 【Key words】 Tacalcitol; Melanocytes; Cell proliferation; Cell movement; Proto-oncogene proteins c-kit

Key words: Tacalcitol