[Home] [Headlines] [Latest Articles] [Latest Comments] [Post] [Sign-in] [Mail] [Setup] [Help]
Status: Not Logged In; Sign In
|
Science/Tech See other Science/Tech Articles Title: Gene find triggers baldness hope Hair loss in humans might not be irreversible, suggest scientists who have helped create new hair cells on the skin of mice. It was thought hair follicles, once damaged, could never be replaced. But a University of Pennsylvania, US, team, writing in the journal Nature, says hair growth can actually be encouraged using a single gene. A UK expert said the study could prove more important in aiding development of better wound-healing techniques. The human head comes equipped with 100,000 tiny hair follicles, from each of which grow a single hair. These follicles are produced by the embryo in the first stages of pregnancy, and it was thought that no further replacement follicles could be produced during life. The Pennsylvania team found that a particular gene important in wound healing, called wnt, appeared to play a role in the production of new hair follicles. In its experiment, small sections of the outer skin layer, or epidermis, were removed from mice. Just this act appeared to awaken stem cell activity in the area, the scientists said, which included the production of a number of hair follicles. If the action of the wnt gene was blocked, no hair follicles were produced; but if it was boosted, then many more hair follicles were produced, with the skin layer eventually being indistinguishable from surrounding areas. 'Remarkable powers' The researchers said that their findings "opened a window" for new treatments not only for baldness, but for other aspects of wound healing and regeneration. British expert Professor Des Tobin, from the University of Bradford, said: "This paper provides convincing evidence that the skin has remarkable powers of regeneration, not just repair as previously known. "It was long thought that hair follicle development, under physiological conditions, was limited to early developmental process in the embryo. "Now this shows convincingly that under the conditions peculiar to the wound-healing environment, the highly complex hair follicle can be created anew from apparently unremarkable cells of the healing epidermis and its underlying dermis." He added: "The implications of this observation are many fold, but principally perhaps for what it tells us about the reprogramming power of adult stem cells, and it applications in regenerative medicine and wound healing."
Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/Latest
#1. To: Ferret Mike (#0)
this will sure make alot of men happy
It sure will. It is allot more hopeful then wasting $$$ every month buying Rogaine that has no guarantee of success.
Thesis: Official 9/11 story is an unproven conspiracy theory. http://911truth.org http://Justicefor911.org http://summeroftruth.org Probable-cause standards have been met for an unlimited investigation of unsolved crimes relating to the events of Sept. 11, including allegations of criminal negligence, cover-up, complicity or commission of the attacks by US officials and assets of intel services.
|
||
|
[Home]
[Headlines]
[Latest Articles]
[Latest Comments]
[Post]
[Sign-in]
[Mail]
[Setup]
[Help]
|
||