<i>In vivo</i> alteration of the keratin 17 gene in hair follicles by oligonucleotide‐directed gene targeting

December 2003 in “ Experimental Dermatology ”

Wu Fan, Kyung Chul Yoon

TLDR Altering the keratin 17 gene in mice hair follicles caused temporary hair issues, but changes were minimal and short-lived.

The study investigated the effects of altering the keratin 17 (K17) gene in hair follicles using oligonucleotide-directed gene targeting in mice. Researchers injected chimeric RNA-DNA oligonucleotides (RDO) and single-stranded oligonucleotides (ssODN) into the skin of newborn mice to induce a mutation (R94P) associated with pachyonychia congenita type 2, which can cause twisted hair and cysts. The results showed that the mutation led to twisted hair shafts, broken hair follicles, and a 50% reduction in full anagen hair follicles in the treated areas. However, these changes were transient, likely due to compensation by other keratins or replacement by normal cells. The frequency of successful gene alteration was below 3%. Control injections without the mutation did not cause abnormalities.

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