The skin of primates. XXV. Melanogenesis in the skin of the bushbabies

In the epidermis of the bushbabies (Galago senegalensis and Galago crassicaudatus) melanogenesis begins in fetal life, reaches a maximum activity at birth, and is finally lost during the early postnatal life. Except for that on the ears, which remains pigmented throughout adult life, the epidermis of the hairy skin of these animals remains largely unpigmented. The outer root sheath in the upper part of full grown follicles has dendritic melanocytes which are active only during the early stages of anagen, after which they remain quiescent until the beginning of the next cycle of growth.