These results show that SOX10 is more specific than MART-1 in distinguishing epidermal melanocytes on sun-damaged skin by avoiding overdiagnosis of melanoma.
The transcription factor SOX10 mediates the differentiation of neural crest-derived cells, and SOX10 by immunohistochemistry (IHC) is used primarily for the diagnosis of melanoma.
In conclusion, our results demonstrated that SOX10 acted as an oncogene and was negatively regulated by miR-31, which supports the potential therapeutic strategy against melanoma by targeting the miR-31-SOX10 axis.
This was accompanied by increased expression of E-cadherin, p16, and MC1R and decreased expression of melanoma malignancy markers including SOX10, Nestin, and ABCB5.
High SOX9 expression was predominantly detected in patients with distant melanoma metastases whereas SOX10 was present in the different stages of melanoma.
Positive staining for SOX10 and the S100 protein are often used in the evaluation of challenging melanocytic neoplasms including melanoma in patient samples.
Shave biopsy and immunohistochemical studies revealed that the tumor was composed of melanoma (highlighted by SOX10 and MART-1, with high Ki-67 proliferative index) intermixed with nodular basal cell carcinoma (highlighted by pan-cytokeratin and Ber-EP4).