Fully Functional Hair Follicles Have Been Grown in The Lab For The First Time
ScienceAlert • • science
Key Points:
- Scientists from the US and Japan have successfully created functional hair follicles in the lab that naturally cycle through growth phases by identifying a crucial third cell type that supports regeneration and tissue attachment.
- The research, conducted in mice, revealed that adding accessory mesenchymal cells to epithelial stem cells and dermal papilla cells enabled lab-grown follicles to connect with underlying tissue and progress through growth cycles without transplantation.
- While human trials are still pending, this discovery outlines a core three-cell "recipe" for producing fully functional hair follicles and opens new avenues for hair restoration treatments and organ regeneration technologies.
- The findings may also aid in developing other lab-grown organs by emphasizing the importance of less obvious but vital cell types in tissue engineering beyond commonly used stem cells
