melanocyten.

1890 J. S. Billings National Med. Dict. II. 128/1 Melanocytes, wandering lymphoid cells that have become colored by the absorption of red blood-corpuscles.

1918 Amer. Naturalist 52 396 (caption) Some of the differentiated cells..of the human body... 10. [Biologic Terminology] Melanocytes. [Medical Terminology] Pigmented cells.

1935 Chem. Abstr. 29 8125 Melanocyte reaction of the preparations of pituitary body and the urine of cancer patient.

1953 Science 5 June 640/2 (table) Recommended terminology of pigment cells. Mature melanin-forming cell: Melanocyte.

1957 Times 4 Oct. 5 There are 500 to 2,000 melanocytes per square millimetre of skin surface, except on the face, forehead and behind the ears, where there are 1,500 to 4,000 per square millimetre.

1971 New Scientist 12 Aug. 366/1 It is difficult to understand why MSH is still secreted by the pituitary gland of birds and mammals, when these animals have lost the capacity for varying the colour of their body through the movements of pigment granules in melanocytes.

1993 Guardian 21 May ii. 17/5 When the skin and hair first begin to develop in the foetus there are no melanocytes present.

1953 A. B. Lerner & T. B. Fitzpatrick in M. Gordon Pigment Cell Growth 329 There are many indications that the pituitary gland produces a melanocyte-stimulating hormone (MSH) (Rattner et al.).

1954 A. B. Lerner et al. in Jrnl. Clin. Endocrinol. & Metabolism 14 1465 We have called the pituitary factor which darkens skin the melanocyte-stimulating hormone or MSH, a term first suggested by W. H. Rattner. Names used previously include melanophore hormone, melanophore-dilating principle, intermedin, and others.

1971 New Scientist 12 Aug. 365/2 Melanocyte-stimulating hormone and corticotrophin..are two of the many polypeptide hormones secreted by the pituitary gland.

1984 J. F. Lamb et al. Essent. Physiol. (ed. 2) xi. 339 The melanocyte-stimulating hormone (MSH) exists in two forms of 13 and 22 amino acids both related closely to ACTH.