Stem Cells to the Rescue: New Hope for Hair Loss Patients
The latest to add to its brag book is the ability to help those who suffer from hair loss.
For the first time, stem cells have been able to be used to regrow hair in a trial method.
CNET reported that the stem cells we’re coaxed into reproducing dermal papillae cells which regulate follicle growth and formation.
The test was run on hairless mice, and the results showed hair growth that was described as “flourishing.”
"We have developed a method using human pluripotent stem cells to create new cells capable of initiating human hair growth. The method is a marked improvement over current methods that rely on transplanting existing hair follicles from one part of the head to another," Alexey Terskikh, Ph.D., associate professor in the Development, Aging and Regeneration Program at Sanford-Burnham was quoted by CNET as saying.
To take things a step further, the tests all looked at if this same result could be achieved if done on the skin of adult humans and found that once the cells were outside of the body they were not able to host the same kind of flourishing follicle production.
But scientists are still hopeful that the latest discovery has set them on the path toward finding a cell-based treatment for hair loss to help the many men and women currently hoping for a cure.
Hairfear - 2-20-2015
