Research carried out at the Health Sciences department of the Universitat Jaume I (UJI) of Castellón, Spain, has identified the genes responsible for sun sensitivity and skin cancer vulnerability. The Skin Cancer Genetics and Human Pigmentation research group (Melanogén) has analyzed the skin’s response to sun and the ability to get tanned, and they have detected different genetic variants among the population of northern Europe. The results of this work have been published in the Photodermatology, Photoimmunology & Photomedicine journal.
The work coordinated by researchers Conrado Martínez-Cadenas and Bárbara Hernando has studied, with genetic techniques, the genes related to the skin’s response to sun exposure in Spain, with the goal of understanding the genetic determinants that can favor a negative reaction of the skin to ultraviolet radiation. The UJI study has analyzed eight genetic variants related with pigmentation and sun sensitivity in saliva samples from 456 Spanish volunteers, 184 of which showed great vulnerability to sunburns, an indicative sign of cutaneous cellular damage.
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