Why do some people go bald? - Sarthak Sinha
- 3,061,510 Views
- 6,029 Questions Answered
- TEDEd Animation
More specifically, two prominent stem cell populations that regulate this cycle are epithelial stem cells and mesenchymal stem cells. To watch more about stem cell interactions within hair follicle, click here. Epithelial stem cells live in an area known as the ‘bulge’ whereas mesenchymal stem cells reside in the dermal sheath. To initiate the growth stage, signals from mesenchymal cells instruct the epithelial cells to divide and form new hair. Although scientists are starting to appreciate the function of each stem cell and the interactions that happen during this process, the identity of these signals is not completely understood. Scientists are now trying to elucidate the identity and the temporal pattern of these signals with the hope that sending these signals alone can reinvigorate stem cells to build new hair. To read about new bioengineering approaches involving the use of adult stem cells to rebuild functional hair, click here.Finally, since hair follicle cycling is also an example of a stem cell dependent process, these self-renewing structures offer an accessible model to study the behavior and the interactions between adult stem cells. To read about a recent study using hair follicle cycling to explaining how stem cells are activated, become quiescent and ultimately die from programmed cell death, click here.
Create and share a new lesson based on this one.
More from Getting Under Our Skin
lesson duration 05:03
lesson duration 04:24