A Protein That Makes Hair Do the Wave
New research on bald mice may bring scientists closer to two long-sought cosmetic and medical goals: regrowing hair and regenerating damaged organs. Hair follicles go through cycles of growth, followed by periods of dormancy. In male-pattern baldness, the dormant periods often get longer. A team at the University of Southern California discovered a protein in the skin that regulates production of stem cells, triggering the active growth of follicles and hair.
Until now the conventional wisdom was that each hair follicle operated independently. But the USC research, published in the Jan. 17 issue of Nature, suggests that the protein, called Bmp, chemically induces groups of follicles to grow in unison. The result: Patches of new hair spread in waves across the naked skin.
It's not such a huge leap from hair regrowth to organ repair. Taking what they've learned from the mice, scientists may be able to develop chemical signals that prod stem cells to become other types of tissues.
—By Arlene Weintraub, Edited by Adam Aston
New research on bald mice may bring scientists closer to two long-sought cosmetic and medical goals: regrowing hair and regenerating damaged organs. Hair follicles go through cycles of growth, followed by periods of dormancy. In male-pattern baldness, the dormant periods often get longer. A team at the University of Southern California discovered a protein in the skin that regulates production of stem cells, triggering the active growth of follicles and hair.
Until now the conventional wisdom was that each hair follicle operated independently. But the USC research, published in the Jan. 17 issue of Nature, suggests that the protein, called Bmp, chemically induces groups of follicles to grow in unison. The result: Patches of new hair spread in waves across the naked skin.
It's not such a huge leap from hair regrowth to organ repair. Taking what they've learned from the mice, scientists may be able to develop chemical signals that prod stem cells to become other types of tissues.
—By Arlene Weintraub, Edited by Adam Aston
