Three-Dimensional Culture of Plucked Human Hair Follicles Inside the Collagen Gel Matrix

Plucked human hair follicles were cultured in a collagen gel matrix, leading to the growth of epithelial cells, likely outer root sheath keratinocytes, which formed spike-like structures over 3 weeks. The study observed variations in the number and size of these spikes among follicles. Autoradiography revealed numerous DNA-synthesizing cells in the outer cell layer and at the edges of the spikes. This culture method was deemed suitable for studying the three-dimensional growth, morphogenesis, and differentiation of outer root sheath cells in vitro.