dana centre - event - Melanin Effects, Not So Black and White

The darker your skin is, the more of the sun-protective melanin pigment you have. The melanin molecule also exists in other parts of the body and could have other, as yet unknown, functions. But melanin is surrounded by controversy – and it’s not just about biology. A whole host of historical and social issues influence the way the biological effects of melanin are perceived and studied.

Could the amount of melanin you have affect your sensitivity to drugs or their detection in your body? What are the social implications of this? What is the research around melanin telling us? What motivates studies of melanin? And should more research be carried out on the effects of melanin by ethnically diverse scientists?

Come and discuss some of these questions and find out about the biology of melanin.

Event organised by:
The Science Museum

Speakers

Aggrey Burke, Chair, African-Caribbean Medical Association
Simon Spense, professional dynamic inspiration coach
Dorothy Bennett, Professor of Cell Biology, St George’s University
Antony Young, Head of Experimental Photobiology, King’s College

Facilitator: Deanne Naula, Outreach Officer, The Science Museum

comments

Sharron said:

Just wanted to say, well done for organising it, I think everybody learned something. The only frustrating thing was the broadness of the subject matter, and the limited time. I think next time pick an aspect of Melanin, eg Neuromelanin and behaviour and focus on that. Many thanks to all the speakers who took part.

Matthew said:

A very interesting evening was missed as the discussion deteriorated into race.

The chemistry of melanin is important in dermatology, ophthalmology &tc &tc. These topics were only touched upon. Why anyone can think of the skin classification system as racist is beyond me!

Dot Bennett said:

Someone said that it was a shame that the discussion did not do more to relate the social and the scientific aspects of melanin together. A comment on that: there is no scientific basis for connecting skin colour with ways of behaving, like "evil" or "good" . This is of course nothing to do with melanin. People with different skin colours are just adapted to different climates and amounts of sun.

More information on melanin? The Wikipedia article seems good.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melanin

Mike said:

The amount of melanin in your skin has nothing to do with climate. The lack of melanin is a mutation. If all the black people on the planet ceased to exist, melanin could not be brought back by simply living in a warm climate.That is a completely false belief. Melanin is a chemical you are born with. You either have it in your DNA or you do not have it. Lighter skinned people can not produce dark skinned people. White skinned people can not produce the opposite of an albino which would be say black, but all persons of color can produce an albino which is the lack of melanin. This is also proof that all peoples on this planet come from the original people on this planet, and those original people were dark black. This is a fact not an opinion. Darker skin is dominant and lighter skin is recessive you simply can not get the dominant from the recessive. Its just simply impossible.

sarah said:

i really enjoyed the talk but i did think that the topic steered away from the science of melanin towards the social science aspect which i noticed happened when Simon Spense was talking in our group which i did find disappointing.

David said:

Got green eyes and I always fall in love with guys with black hair ???

Oh and I burn in the sun.

Dawnie said:

I wonder why, when there is liver transplant from white to brown or brown to white people that their skin also changes colour. Black is a poltical concept... no one is totally White or Black. Celebrate diversity.. of colours sizes, sexualities, sexes, or whatever the other differences are amongst the tapestry of human being.Skin tone has for too long been the basis of discrimination, derogatory remarks and negative assumption for those of us who are BLACK.

tigocerge said:

Good site! Successes in future

MELANIN GIRL..HE-HE said:

Phooey...I thought melanin filled human beings were "inferior ",because of melanin in large amounts?????

Now all of a sudden the very reasons for those erroneous theologies,are now looked at as being not only amazing,and the receptors of energy frequency waves to make sound/light...but also to protect human beings from the harmful sun rays that are getting increasingly more pronounced each year...lol..

LOL..talk about a slap in the face...he-he= )

MELANIN GIRL..HE-HE said:

IM Highly Melanated... said:

Its funny how us blacks was taught to hate our dark skin and coiled hair in this country and now the truth is that The Whitemans problem with us is his lack of melanin that helps him make good decision is null & void, Got Melanin?

Nikki said:

Mike I don't think you quite understand the concept of the dominant and recessive nature of melanin.
We all produce melanin to a certain amount, and yes lighter skinned people could not produce as much as black people because of their genetics, but it is a sliding scale, not a mendelian "you have it or you don't".

If all black people were wiped out and the climate became so hot that darker skin was a favourable trait to have (i.e. to the point that lighter skinned people were all dying of skin cancer or some such thing), then people who produced slightly more melanin would be more likely to survive and then the population would shift towards having darker skin.

White people came about because the further away they got from the strong sun near the equator, the less selective pressure there was to have dark skin to protect from the sun, and in lighter skin was selected for additionally as less sun could lead to vitamin D deficiency.

An alibino population could never become black, but with the right environmental selection a black population could become white and a white population could become black!

kevin jones said:

Simon SPence was brilliant i loved the way he went easy on the crowd but he was profound he sent a wake up call to the crow excellent

Stephen jones said:

Great ...wow Simon wow