Nordlund J J
Dermatol Clin. 1986 Jul;4(3):407-18.
Most pigment cells during embryogenesis arise from the cranial or truncal portion of the neural crest and migrate to the skin, hair bulbs, choroid of the eye, the inner ear, leptomeninges, and other tissues. Cells of the retinal pigment epithelium come from a different source, namely, the primitive forebrain, and are involved in the formation of the retina and the optic nerves and tracts. Most pigment cells in all parts of the body seem to be constant in number and function until approximately middle age (the fourth or fifth decade of life). Thereafter, the number of melanocytes in the skin, hair, and eyes and the number of nevi begin to decrease. One function of pigment cells may be to eradicate oxygen radicals that are responsible in part for inducing malignancies and are also involved in the aging process. Possibly one result of the loss of melanocytes from the various organs is acceleration of the aging process in a permissive environment for the development of malignancies.
大多数色素细胞在胚胎发育过程中起源于神经嵴的颅部或躯干部分，并迁移至皮肤、毛囊、眼球脉络膜、内耳、软脑膜及其他组织。视网膜色素上皮细胞则来自不同的来源，即原始前脑，参与视网膜、视神经及视束的形成。身体各部位的大多数色素细胞在数量和功能上似乎在大约中年期（生命的第四个或第五个十年）之前保持稳定。此后，皮肤、毛发和眼睛中的黑素细胞数量以及痣的数量开始减少。色素细胞的一个功能可能是清除氧自由基，氧自由基部分导致恶性肿瘤的发生，也参与衰老过程。各器官中黑素细胞的丧失可能导致的一个结果是，在有利于恶性肿瘤发展的环境中加速衰老过程。
