MLANA and melanoma: In patients with melanoma, a shift is noted in the landscape of the melanoma transcriptome, i.e., MLANA and MIF transcripts are elevated (but not TYR or MITF)34, leading some to speculate that the circulation of normal melanocytic precursors is inhibited in patients with melanomas, perhaps due to factors, e.g., cytokines released into the systemic circulation34.