Dopachrome spontaneously tautomerizes into 5,6-dihydroxyindole (DHI) via decarboxylation at physiological pH (Mason et al. 1948, Wakamatsu & Ito 1988, Kishida et al. 2015). This is usually a minor process of melanin synthesis in vivo. However, in human hair follicular melanocytes, it predominates (Commo et al. 2012).
Mason, HS
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