The Formation of Vellus Hair Follicles from Human Adult Epidermis

July 1956 in “ Journal of Investigative Dermatology ”

Albert M. Kligman, John S. Strauss

vellus hair follicles human adult epidermis dermabrasion sebaceous glands embryonic hair follicle development biopsies skin abrasion skin biopsy

TLDR Adult human skin can grow new fine hair follicles after a deep exfoliation treatment.

Albert M. Kligman and John S. Strauss's study on five adult subjects showed that adult human epidermis can form new vellus hair follicles after dermabrasion, a process where the skin is frozen and abraded to a depth of about 2 millimeters. Biopsies taken from one week to two months after the procedure revealed the development of new vellus hair follicles with sebaceous glands from the epidermis, mirroring embryonic hair follicle development. The study concluded that the adult human epidermis has the potential to regenerate new hair follicles, although it's uncertain if this includes the regeneration of coarse terminal hair follicles.

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