Abstract
Some amino acids have bioregulatory functions, which far exceed those of precursors for proteins or of substrates for specific enzymes. Two of these amino acids, L-tyrosine and L-dopa, are precursors to melanin and catecholamines. In vertebrates, they can act as inducers and regulators of the melanogenic apparatus and of MSH receptors-two quite complex functions that could hardly be performed by mere substrates. Focussing on the pigmentary system as a study model, we therefore explore the hypothesis that L-tyrosine and L-dopa act as hormone-like bioregulators in mammals, with melanocytes regulating tyrosine and dopa activity via their metabolic consumption.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 123-138 |
| Number of pages | 16 |
| Journal | Journal of theoretical biology |
| Volume | 143 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Mar 8 1990 |
| Externally published | Yes |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Statistics and Probability
- Modeling and Simulation
- Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology(all)
- Immunology and Microbiology(all)
- Agricultural and Biological Sciences(all)
- Applied Mathematics
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Cite this
Slominski, A., & Paus, R. (1990). Are L-tyrosine and L-dopa hormone-like bioregulators? Journal of theoretical biology, 143(1), 123-138. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-5193(05)80292-9