Cloned human cells can be used to treat loss of hair, British researchers reported today.
Although the finding may cheer up middle-aged men, the researchers say it could also help patients recovering from burns and women who suffer hair loss.
The Durham University researchers say they have successfully recreated a hair restoration feature found in rodents.
This involved the dermal papillae, a group of cells at the base of the hair follicle.
Reporting in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the researchers say they have successfully cultured the human version of these cells and implanted clumps of cells onto human skin. The experiment suggests this can trigger new hair growth.
Researcher Professor Colin Jahoda said: “Ultimately we think that this study is an important step toward the goal of creating a replacement skin that contains hair follicles for use with, for example, burn patients.
“We need to establish the origins of the critical intrinsic properties of the newly induced hairs, such as their hair cycle kinetics, colour, angle, positioning, and texture.
“We also need to establish the role of the host epidermal cells that the dermal papilla cells interact with, to make the new structures.”
Claire Higgins et al. Microenvironmental reprogramming by three-dimensional culture enables dermal papilla cells to induce de novo human hair-follicle growth. PNAS 21 October 2013
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