Inducing Hair Follicle Organogenesis With Defined Environmental Protein Factors

The study from September 30, 2016, found that hair follicle neogenesis, or the creation of new hair follicles, can be induced in postnatal life using a protein extract from embryonic skin of a specific developmental stage. This was demonstrated in both a full thickness wound and a modified patch assay in mice, without the need for inductive mesenchymal cells. The process was primarily mediated through the effect on fibroblasts, and when adult fibroblasts were cultured with the protein extract, they gained the ability to induce new hair follicles. The study identified that insulin/IGF signaling was activated and required for hair follicle inductivity in adult fibroblasts. Additionally, three extracellular proteins enriched in embryonic skin were identified as necessary and sufficient to induce hair follicle neogenesis in vivo. This suggests that hair follicle regeneration can be initiated by creating a pro-regeneration environment with defined extracellular factors enriched in the developmental stages.