Sphere Formation Increases the Ability of Cultured Human Dermal Papilla Cells to Induce Hair Follicles from Mouse Epidermal Cells in a Reconstitution Assay
August 2011
in “
Journal of Investigative Dermatology
”
TLDR Forming spheres boosts the ability of certain human cells to create hair follicles when mixed with mouse skin cells.
In 2011, a study found that sphere formation significantly enhanced the hair-inducing capacity of cultured human dermal papilla (DP) cells. The researchers used a reconstitution assay and expanded the DP cells in a two-dimensional (2D) culture. They observed hair follicle formation when DP spheres from various passages of culture were mixed with newborn mouse epidermal cells, but not when 2D cultures from the same population were used.