MedFuture - Research Center for Advanced Medicine, "Iuliu Hațieganu" University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Louis Pasteur Street 4-6, Gh. Marinescu Street 23, 400349 Cluj-Napoca, Romania.
Department of Pharmaceutical Analysis, Faculty of Pharmacy, "Iuliu Hațieganu" University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Louis Pasteur Street 6, 400349Cluj-Napoca, Romania.
Int J Mol Sci. 2019 Aug 13;20(16):3943. doi: 10.3390/ijms20163943.
The generic term "melanin" describes a black pigment of biological origin, although some melanins can be brown or even yellow. The pigment is characterized as a heterogenic polymer of phenolic or indolic nature, and the classification of eu-, pheo- and allo- melanin is broadly accepted. This classification is based on the chemical composition of the monomer subunit structure of the pigment. Due to the high heterogeneity of melanins, their analytical characterization can be a challenging task. In the present work, we synthesized the current information about the analytical methods which can be applied in melanin analysis workflow, from extraction and purification to high-throughput methods, such as matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass-spectrometry or pyrolysis gas chromatography. Our thorough comparative evaluation of analytical data published so far on melanin analysis has proven to be a difficult task in terms of finding equivalent results, even when the same matrix was used. Moreover, we emphasize the importance of prior knowledge of melanin types and properties in order to select a valid experimental design using analytical methods that are able to deliver reliable results and draw consistent conclusions.
“黑色素”是一个通用术语，描述的是一种源自生物的黑色色素，尽管有些黑色素可能是棕色甚至黄色。这种色素的特征是酚类或吲哚类物质的杂化聚合物，并且广泛接受将黑色素分为真黑色素、褐黑色素和异黑色素。这种分类是基于色素单体亚基结构的化学组成。由于黑色素的高度异质性，对其进行分析鉴定可能是一项具有挑战性的任务。在本工作中，我们综合了目前有关黑色素分析工作流程中可应用的分析方法的信息，包括从提取和纯化到高通量方法，如基质辅助激光解吸/电离质谱或热解气相色谱。我们对迄今为止发表的关于黑色素分析的分析数据进行了彻底的比较评估，结果证明即使使用相同的基质，找到等效结果也是一项困难的任务。此外，我们强调在选择使用能够提供可靠结果并得出一致结论的分析方法进行实验设计之前，了解黑色素的类型和特性的重要性。
