Canine Hair-Follicle Keratinocytes Enriched With Bulge Cells Have the Highly Proliferative Characteristic of Stem Cells

This study identified and isolated highly proliferative keratinocytes from canine hair follicles, which were considered candidate epithelial stem cells. The research demonstrated that follicular keratinocytes in dogs had a greater proliferative capacity and expressed CD34, a marker associated with stem cells, more than epidermal keratinocytes. The study used in vitro colony-forming assays and found that keratin 15, another stem cell marker, was predominantly expressed in the bulge area of canine hair follicles. This was the first in vitro identification of such cells in dogs, highlighting their potential as epithelial stem cells.