MTORC1 Activity Negatively Regulates Human Hair Follicle Growth and Pigmentation

May 2023 in “ EMBO reports ”

Takahiro Suzuki, Jérémy Chéret, Fernanda Dinelli Scala, Aysun Akhundlu, Jennifer Gherardini, D. Demetrius, James D B O'Sullivan, Gorana Kuka Epstein, Alan J Bauman, Constantinos Demetriades, Ralf Paus

mTORC1 hair follicle growth hair pigmentation rapamycin melanotropic hormone TSC2 melanocytes hair loss depigmentation disorders hair growth hair color melanin hair loss treatment

TLDR High mTORC1 activity slows hair growth and causes it to lose color.

The study concludes that mTORC1 activity negatively impacts human hair follicle growth and pigmentation. Inhibition of mTORC1 using rapamycin was shown to stimulate hair follicle growth and pigmentation by increasing melanotropic hormone production, even in depigmented hair follicles with surviving melanocytes. Conversely, reducing TSC2, a negative regulator of mTORC1, decreased hair follicle pigmentation. These findings suggest that targeting mTORC1 could be a novel therapeutic approach for treating hair loss and depigmentation disorders.

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