The incredible potential of stem cells derives from their ability to develop into any kind of cell the body needs. Scientists are now looking at ways that stem cells may be able to help those with hair loss.
Hair grows in cycles, routinely going through stages of growing, resting, falling out, and being replaced by a new hair. In persons who are balding, not all the lost hairs are replaced by new hairs. Hair grows from a small protrusion called a papilla at the base of the hair follicle. Each hair follicle produces only one hair.
Scientists previously believed that you were born with all the hair follicles you would ever have. If some of the follicles stopped producing hair, you would begin balding, and the only way to change that was to implant new follicles into the balding area.
As reported in Science Daily, Swiss researchers discovered that there are multipotent stem cells in hair follicles, capable of developing into the various cell types needed for hair to grow and new follicles to form. The researchers were able to isolate and track stem cells through development into eight different types of cells needed for hair growth through multiple generations, proving that they were truly multipotent cells.
Multipotent is defined as being able to develop or form any cell of a particular cell line. In other words, multipotent cells in hair follicles can form cells having to do with hair growth, but not any other cells. Other types of stem cells may be referred to as pluripotent, which means they can develop into many different cell lines, such as blood, muscle, bone, etc.
A more recent study, also cited in Science Daily, was conducted by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. These scientists confirmed that hair follicles can regenerate by re-awakening genes once only active in an embryonic state, specifically using a protein referred to as wnt. They found that wound healing can temporarily cause the genes to reactivate, allowing for skin regeneration rather than just healing. This could open up new avenues for treatment of pattern baldness, as well as other scalp and skin disorders. It may also offer potential for treatment of burn victims whose hair follicles have been destroyed.
Although there is still a great deal of testing necessary before these treatments may be even attempted on humans, these findings are a positive indicator for the future of stem cell use to correct hair loss.
