Emerging Interactions Between Skin Stem Cells and Their Niches

August 2014 in “ Nature Medicine ”

Ya-Chieh Hsu, Lishi Li, Elaine Fuchs

alopecia hair follicles skin stem cells Notch signaling epidermis hair follicle stem cells immune responses peripheral nerves blood vessels regenerative medicine

TLDR Skin stem cells interacting with their environment is crucial for maintaining and regenerating skin and hair, and understanding this can help develop new treatments for skin and hair disorders.

The 2014 document "Emerging interactions between skin stem cells and their niches" discussed the crucial role of interactions between skin stem cells and their environments, or niches, in maintaining and regenerating skin tissue, including hair follicles. It was found that disruptions in these interactions can lead to diseases like alopecia. The study also highlighted the potential of these interactions in developing new treatments for skin and hair disorders. The document explored the complexity of the skin, which contains several distinct populations of stem cells and a rich array of cell types. It also discussed how these interactions change during aging, wounding, and skin cancer initiation. The study further delved into the role of Notch signaling in the transition from basal to spinous layer in the epidermis, and the regulation of hair follicle stem cells. The document also touched on the impact of immune responses, peripheral nerves, blood vessels, and aging on hair follicles and the epidermis. The document concluded by emphasizing the importance of understanding the complexity of niche components within the skin for future advancements in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.

View this study on europepmc.org →

Discuss this study in the Community →

Research cited in this study

27 / 27 results

research Calcineurin/NFATc1 Signaling Links Skin Stem Cell Quiescence to Hormonal Signaling During Pregnancy and Lactation

40 citations, April 2014 in “Genes & Development”

Hormones during pregnancy and lactation keep skin stem cells inactive, preventing hair growth.

research Regenerative Hair Waves in Aging Mice and Extra-Follicular Modulators Follistatin, Dkk1, and Sfrp4

75 citations, March 2014 in “Journal of Investigative Dermatology”

Aging mice have slower hair regeneration due to changes in signal balance, but the environment, not stem cell loss, controls this, suggesting treatments could focus on environmental factors.

research In Vivo Transcriptional Governance of Hair Follicle Stem Cells by Canonical Wnt Regulators

173 citations, January 2014 in “Nature Cell Biology”

Wnt signaling controls whether hair follicle stem cells stay inactive or regenerate hair.

research Fgf9 From Dermal γδ T Cells Induces Hair Follicle Neogenesis After Wounding

237 citations, June 2013 in “Nature Medicine”

A protein from certain immune cells is key for new hair growth after skin injury in mice.

research Local Circadian Clock Gates Cell Cycle Progression of Transient Amplifying Cells During Regenerative Hair Cycling

116 citations, May 2013 in “Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America”

Hair grows faster in the morning and is more vulnerable to damage from radiation due to the internal clock in hair follicle cells.

research Dermal Papilla Cell Number Specifies Hair Size, Shape, and Cycling, and Its Reduction Causes Follicular Decline

211 citations, April 2013 in “Development”

More dermal papilla cells in hair follicles lead to larger, healthier hair, while fewer cells cause hair thinning and loss.

research Intradermal Adipocytes Mediate Fibroblast Recruitment During Skin Wound Healing

238 citations, March 2013 in “Development”

Fat cells help recruit healing cells and build skin structure during wound healing.

research Age-Associated Inflammation Inhibits Epidermal Stem Cell Function

144 citations, September 2012 in “Genes & development”

Aging causes skin stem cells to work less effectively.

research Brain And Muscle Arnt-Like Protein-1 (BMAL1) Controls Circadian Cell Proliferation And Susceptibility To UVB-Induced DNA Damage In The Epidermis

221 citations, July 2012 in “Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America”

BMAL1 controls skin cell growth and UV damage risk, peaking at night.

research Identification of Stem Cell Populations in Sweat Glands and Ducts Reveals Roles in Homeostasis and Wound Repair

265 citations, July 2012 in “Cell”

The study found that sweat glands contain different types of stem cells that help with healing and maintaining healthy skin.

research Live Imaging of Stem Cell and Progeny Behavior in Physiological Hair-Follicle Regeneration

305 citations, June 2012 in “Nature”

Hair regeneration needs dynamic cell behavior and mesenchyme presence for stem cell activation.

research Stress-Induced Production of Chemokines by Hair Follicles Regulates the Trafficking of Dendritic Cells in Skin

286 citations, June 2012 in “Nature Immunology”

Hair follicles help attract immune cells to the skin during stress.

research Fully Functional Hair Follicle Regeneration Through the Rearrangement of Stem Cells and Their Niches

179 citations, April 2012 in “Nature Communications”

Regenerated fully functional hair follicles using stem cells, with potential for hair regrowth therapy.

research A Family Business: Stem Cell Progeny Join the Niche to Regulate Homeostasis

254 citations, January 2012 in “Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology”

Stem cell offspring help control their parent stem cells, affecting tissue health, healing, and cancer.

research Paracrine TGF-β Signaling Counterbalances BMP-Mediated Repression in Hair Follicle Stem Cell Activation

321 citations, January 2012 in “Cell stem cell”

TGF-β2 helps activate hair follicle stem cells by counteracting BMP signals.

research The Functional Organization of Cutaneous Low-Threshold Mechanosensory Neurons

660 citations, December 2011 in “Cell”

Different hair follicles in the skin are innervated by unique combinations of mechanosensory neurons, crucial for touch sensation.

research The Circadian Molecular Clock Creates Epidermal Stem Cell Heterogeneity

293 citations, November 2011 in “Nature”

The circadian clock affects skin stem cell behavior, impacting aging and cancer risk.

research Adipocyte Lineage Cells Contribute to the Skin Stem Cell Niche to Drive Hair Cycling

499 citations, September 2011 in “Cell”

Fat-related cells are important for initiating hair growth.

research Coordinated Activation of Wnt in Epithelial and Melanocyte Stem Cells Initiates Pigmented Hair Regeneration

260 citations, June 2011 in “Cell”

Wnt signaling is crucial for pigmented hair regeneration by controlling stem cell activation and differentiation.

research Nerve-Derived Sonic Hedgehog Defines a Niche for Hair Follicle Stem Cells Capable of Becoming Epidermal Stem Cells

396 citations, May 2011 in “Cell stem cell”

Nerve signals are crucial for hair follicle stem cells to become skin stem cells and help in wound healing.

research Self-Organizing and Stochastic Behaviors During the Regeneration of Hair Stem Cells

176 citations, April 2011 in “Science”

Hair stem cell regeneration is controlled by signals that can explain different hair growth patterns and baldness.

research Beta-Catenin Activity in the Dermal Papilla Regulates Morphogenesis and Regeneration of Hair

314 citations, April 2010 in “Developmental Cell”

β-catenin in the dermal papilla is crucial for normal hair growth and repair.

research Identification of the Cell Lineage at the Origin of Basal Cell Carcinoma

351 citations, February 2010 in “Nature Cell Biology”

Basal cell carcinoma mostly starts from cells in the upper skin layers, not hair follicle stem cells.

research An Extended Epidermal Response Heals Cutaneous Wounds in the Absence of a Hair Follicle Stem Cell Contribution

170 citations, November 2007 in “The journal of investigative dermatology/Journal of investigative dermatology”

Skin can heal wounds without hair follicle stem cells, but it takes a bit longer.

research Hair Growth Inhibition by Psychoemotional Stress: A Mouse Model for Neural Mechanisms in Hair Growth Control

127 citations, December 2005 in “Experimental Dermatology”

Stress can stop hair growth in mice, and treatments can reverse this effect.

research Molecular Dissection of Mesenchymal–Epithelial Interactions in the Hair Follicle

417 citations, September 2005 in “PLoS biology”

Understanding gene expression in hair follicles can reveal insights into hair growth and disorders.

research Developmental Timing of Hair Follicle and Dorsal Skin Innervation in Mice

86 citations, May 2002 in “Journal of comparative neurology”

Nerve growth in mouse skin and hair follicles happens in stages and is closely linked to hair development.

Related Community Posts Join

6 / 1000+ results

community Diffuse hair loss and scalp biopsies

in Research 692 upvotes 4 months ago

Scalp biopsies are crucial for diagnosing hair loss conditions like Diffuse Unpatterned Alopecia (DUPA) and retrograde hair loss, as treatments like finasteride and dutasteride may not be effective if other conditions are present. Combining PPAR-GAMMA agonists with retinoids could improve treatments for conditions like Lichen Planopilaris.

community New and Interesting HairLoss Studies/Papers/Reviews

in Treatment 42 upvotes 4 years ago

Hair loss treatments discussed include Dutasteride with Ketoconazole, tissue engineering strategies, and androgenetic alopecia therapies. Massage doubles follicular retention, improving treatment effectiveness.

community Please stop looking for a natural way to stop your hairloss

in Chat 247 upvotes 2 years ago

There is no natural way to stop hair loss; pharmaceuticals like minoxidil, finasteride, and RU58841 are the only effective treatments. Some users report success with minoxidil and microneedling, while others discuss the side effects of finasteride.

community Injecting stomach fat into the scalp could cure baldness in just six months

in Update 114 upvotes 6 years ago

A potential treatment for hair loss that involves injecting fat into the scalp; the role of testosterone and estrogen in thinning fat tissue under the skin; research on using lard to treat androgenic alopecia, as well as PRP + ACELL/amniotic stem cell treatments; and ongoing clinical trials by doctors involved in the study.

community PP405: The Ultimate Hair Loss Drug for Complete Hair Growth

in Research/Science 206 upvotes 5 days ago

PP405 is a new hair loss treatment in phase 2 trials that may promote hair growth by increasing lactate production and activating hair follicle stem cells. It could potentially replace hormone-disrupting treatments like Minoxidil and finasteride.

community Clearing the air on how non-surgical treatments really work

18 upvotes 5 years ago

Treatments for hair loss, including finasteride, dutasteride, minoxidil, ketoconazole, microneedling, and low level laser light therapy, which aim to reduce DHT production, increase cell absorption and blood flow, and stimulate epidermal stem cells. It also stresses the importance of patience when using these treatments.

Related Research

1 / 1 results

research Emerging Interactions Between Skin Stem Cells and Their Niches

426 citations, August 2014 in “Nature Medicine”

Skin stem cells interacting with their environment is crucial for maintaining and regenerating skin and hair, and understanding this can help develop new treatments for skin and hair disorders.