{"title":"Noninvasive Assessment of Melasma Pathological Features: Side-By-Side Comparison of Two-Photon Microscopy and Reflectance Confocal Microscopy","authors":"Xiaoli Ning, Jungang Yang, Hongfei Ouyang, Lingfan Jiang, Jiahui Han, Ziyuan Tian, Jingkai Xu, Yujun Sheng, Xianbo Zuo, Yong Cui","doi":"10.1111/pcmr.70057","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div>\n \n <p>Melasma, a refractory hyperpigmentation disorder, requires noninvasive tools for accurate pathological assessment. This study compared two-photon microscopy (TPM) and reflectance confocal microscopy (RCM) for the in vivo characterization of melasma pathology. In this cross-sectional study, TPM and RCM features and imaging clarity were evaluated in 130 melasma patients. Spearman correlation analyses were performed between TPM-quantified epidermal melanin, the melanin index (MI), and the individual typology angle (ITA). Features were also compared between active and stable disease stages. TPM and RCM showed substantial agreement in detecting increased epidermal melanin (κ = 0.651), activated melanocytes at the dermal-epidermal junction (DEJ) (κ = 0.711), and flattened rete ridges (κ = 0.691) (all <i>p</i> < 0.001). TPM excelled in visualizing intracellular melanin distribution, pendulous melanocytes under the DEJ, and solar elastosis, while RCM better identified activated melanocytes at the DEJ. TPM-quantified epidermal melanin content correlated positively with MI and negatively with ITA. RCM-detected dermal inflammatory cells were more prevalent in active than in stable melasma. In conclusion, TPM and RCM synergistically capture critical melasma features, with TPM assessing disease severity via epidermal melanin quantification, whereas RCM reflects disease activity by detecting inflammatory cells. This provides clinicians with tailored imaging tools for precision management.</p>\n </div>","PeriodicalId":219,"journal":{"name":"Pigment Cell & Melanoma Research","volume":"38 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.6000,"publicationDate":"2025-09-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Pigment Cell & Melanoma Research","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/pcmr.70057","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"CELL BIOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Melasma, a refractory hyperpigmentation disorder, requires noninvasive tools for accurate pathological assessment. This study compared two-photon microscopy (TPM) and reflectance confocal microscopy (RCM) for the in vivo characterization of melasma pathology. In this cross-sectional study, TPM and RCM features and imaging clarity were evaluated in 130 melasma patients. Spearman correlation analyses were performed between TPM-quantified epidermal melanin, the melanin index (MI), and the individual typology angle (ITA). Features were also compared between active and stable disease stages. TPM and RCM showed substantial agreement in detecting increased epidermal melanin (κ = 0.651), activated melanocytes at the dermal-epidermal junction (DEJ) (κ = 0.711), and flattened rete ridges (κ = 0.691) (all p < 0.001). TPM excelled in visualizing intracellular melanin distribution, pendulous melanocytes under the DEJ, and solar elastosis, while RCM better identified activated melanocytes at the DEJ. TPM-quantified epidermal melanin content correlated positively with MI and negatively with ITA. RCM-detected dermal inflammatory cells were more prevalent in active than in stable melasma. In conclusion, TPM and RCM synergistically capture critical melasma features, with TPM assessing disease severity via epidermal melanin quantification, whereas RCM reflects disease activity by detecting inflammatory cells. This provides clinicians with tailored imaging tools for precision management.
期刊介绍:
Pigment Cell & Melanoma Researchpublishes manuscripts on all aspects of pigment cells including development, cell and molecular biology, genetics, diseases of pigment cells including melanoma. Papers that provide insights into the causes and progression of melanoma including the process of metastasis and invasion, proliferation, senescence, apoptosis or gene regulation are especially welcome, as are papers that use the melanocyte system to answer questions of general biological relevance. Papers that are purely descriptive or make only minor advances to our knowledge of pigment cells or melanoma in particular are not suitable for this journal. Keywords
Pigment Cell & Melanoma Research, cell biology, melatonin, biochemistry, chemistry, comparative biology, dermatology, developmental biology, genetics, hormones, intracellular signalling, melanoma, molecular biology, ocular and extracutaneous melanin, pharmacology, photobiology, physics, pigmentary disorders