Follicular Cell Implantation: An Update on Hair Follicle Cloning
May 2004
in “
Facial Plastic Surgery Clinics of North America
”
follicular cell implantation hair follicle cloning hair transplantation donor hair hair follicles inductive cells culturing cells reimplanting cells new follicles hair-inducing properties animal studies human studies hair cloning hair transplant donor hair hair cells cell culture cell reimplantation new hair follicles
TLDR The document concludes that while "hair follicle cloning" shows promise for unlimited donor hair, it faces challenges with consistency and safety in humans.
The 2004 document discusses follicular cell implantation, a technique aimed at overcoming the limitations of traditional hair transplantation by providing an unlimited supply of donor hair. This method, often inaccurately referred to as "hair follicle cloning," involves harvesting hair follicles, isolating inductive cells, culturing them, and reimplanting them to generate new follicles. The paper outlines the challenges in identifying the right cell types, maintaining their hair-inducing properties during culture, and addressing safety and regulatory concerns. Although animal studies have supported the concept, human studies have faced issues with consistency and reproducibility. Despite these challenges, the potential for an unlimited donor supply motivates ongoing research.
