The inhibitory effects of dihydromyricetin purified from Ampelopsis grossedentata on melanogenesis and its antioxidant characteristics were investigated. Assays of tyrosinase activities and melanin content in B16F10 mouse melanoma cells were carried out spectrophotometrically, and the expression of melanogenesis-related proteins was determined by Western blotting. The possible signaling pathways involved in dihydromyricetin-mediated depigmentation were also examined using specific protein kinase regulators. The results revealed that dihydromyricetin effectively suppresses intracellular tyrosinase activity and decreases melanin amount in cells. Dihydromyricetin also exhibits antioxidant properties and effectively decreases intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive species (RS) levels. Our results indicated that dihydromyricetin inhibits melanogenesis through its antioxidant properties and by downregulating protein kinase A (PKA), protein kinase C (PKC), and mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK) signaling pathways. The present study indicates that dihydromyricetin has the potential to be developed into a depigmentation skin care product. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.