melanin
noun
mel·a·nin
| \ ˈme-lə-nən
\
\
Definition of melanin
: any of various black, dark brown, reddish-brown, or yellow pigments of animal or plant structures (such as skin or hair)
Examples of melanin in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Another protein found in skin is melanin, which is responsible for skin tone. — Katherine Ellen Foley, Quartz, "Selfie-based blood pressure readings could help equalize health care—if they work on all skin types," 6 Aug. 2019 These special cells produce a substance called melanin, which darkens the skin to protect it from the sun. — Dara Elasfar, Washington Post, "Both tans or burns mean damage has already happened.," 9 July 2019 An electron microscope revealed that in both species, the patches contained bits of melanin—a black pigment—tucked beneath a layer of bumps in the spider cuticles. — Nadia Drake, National Geographic, "How peacock spiders use optical illusions to woo females," 22 May 2019 And Zharov pictures using it to detect or monitor other cancer types by tagging patients’ CTCs with gold nanoparticles that, like melanin, would cause the cells to heat up. — Jocelyn Kaiser, Science | AAAS, "Laser detects tumor cells in bloodstream, potentially improving melanoma screening and treatment," 12 June 2019 These types of bumps or spots form when melanocytes, the skin cells that create melanin, clump together or grow in clusters rather than being spread out. — Jenn Sinrich, SELF, "12 Common Face 'Bumps' and How to Deal With Them," 31 May 2019 With this condition, the body doesn’t produce enough of the dark-colored pigment called melanin, and occasionally other pigments as well. — Jeff Mauritzen, National Geographic, "Rare pale-colored penguin and seals spotted on remote island," 25 Apr. 2019 Skin cells respond to damage from UV rays by producing more of the pigment melanin to protect themselves from further injury. — Skyla Errter, baltimoresun.com/maryland/carroll, "Health Dept.: Toughest skin and sunscreen myths busted," 19 July 2019 And those who already have more melanin in their skin, are more likely to develop hyperpigmentation after an inflammatory issue. — Tatiana Walk-morris, SELF, "5 Things People of Color Should Know About Taking Care of Their Skin," 12 July 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'melanin.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for melanin
melanin
noun
English Language Learners Definition of melanin
: a dark brown or black substance that is a natural part of people's skin, hair, and eyes
See the full definition for melanin in the English Language Learners Dictionary
melanin
noun
mel·a·nin
| \ ˈmel-ə-nən
\
\
Medical Definition of melanin
: any of various black, dark brown, reddish brown, or yellow pigments of animal or plant structures (as skin, hair, the choroid, or a raw potato when exposed to air)
especially
: any of numerous animal pigments that are essentially polymeric derivatives of indole formed by enzymatic modification of tyrosine