In:
eLife, eLife Sciences Publications, Ltd, Vol. 6 ( 2017-07-11)
Abstract:
Skin includes hundreds of thousands of hair follicles that cycle through different stages of activity. Each follicle grows hair, sometimes (in the case of long hairs like human head hair and horse tail hairs) for several years, before losing it. The follicle then goes through a resting stage before starting to grow another hair. To achieve high hair density, the follicles need to coordinate their hair-making activities. If they all worked independently from one another, bald patches would inevitably form that would compromise how effectively the skin works. Groups of cells can communicate using a variety of chemical signals. It was not known whether cells in hair follicles from different regions of the skin rely on the same signals to communicate, and whether follicles in neighboring regions are able to ‘understand’ one another. Through a combination of mathematical modeling and experimental results from mice, Wang, Oh et al. now show that hair follicles across the body use a common signaling system. This system consists of a pair of signals: ‘activators’ that stimulate hair growth, and ‘inhibitors’ that prevent it. The balance between these two signals affects the pattern of hair growth. For example, higher levels of activators allow fur to grow thickly on the belly of the mouse, likely to protect against heat loss and injuries from the ground. By contract, higher levels of inhibitors make the hairs on the ear sparse, which may prevent them from interfering with hearing. There is little evidence that hair follicles on the scalp communicate in adult humans. Learning to activate and control communication between these follicles could provide a way to treat male pattern baldness and similar conditions. Understanding how hair follicles communicate may also help researchers to develop ways of regenerating other fast-renewing organs, such as the gut and bone marrow.
Type of Medium:
Online Resource
ISSN:
2050-084X
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Language:
English
Publisher:
eLife Sciences Publications, Ltd
Publication Date:
2017
detail.hit.zdb_id:
2687154-3
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