Recently, research in "Developmental Cells" revealed a key signaling molecule that can activate hair growth, providing a therapeutic target for the treatment of androgen-induced alopecia (hereinafter referred to as "androgenetic alopecia"), namely: "SCUBE3 "molecular. The "SCUBE3" molecule could provide treatment for androgenetic alopecia, a common form of hair loss in women and men.
Screenshot of the paper
Like plants in nature, the growth of hair is inseparable from the "seeds" in the hair follicles- hair follicle stem cells. When the dormant hair follicle stem cells are awakened, they will continuously generate new hair.
"At different times in the hair follicle cycle, the same dermal cells can send signals that keep the hair follicle dormant or trigger new hair growth," said Maksim Plikus, professor of cell biology.
"We found that the SCUBE3 signaling molecule naturally produced by dermal cells can 'tell' neighboring hair stem cells to start dividing, and the feedback result is that our hair can start growing.
Dermal cells produce activating molecules that are responsible for effective hair growth in mice and humans. Crucial. In androgenetic alopecia patients, the dermal cells function abnormally and have greatly reduced normal activation molecules.
The research team microinjected SCUBE3 into the skin of mice transplanted with human scalp hair follicles. To avoid excessive hair growth, the researchers also used drugs to inhibit TGF-β in mice when microinjecting SCUBE3 protein. The results were encouraging. The dormant human hair follicles in the mice and the surrounding mouse hair follicles were all affected. Hair grew back. This means that only microinjections of the SCUBE3 protein are needed to activate hair growth in human hair follicles.
"These experiments provide proof-of-principle data that SCUBE3 or derived molecules could be a promising therapeutic. "Hair loss therapy" said Christian Guerrero-Juarez, co-author of the "Development Cell" paper and a postdoctoral researcher in mathematics.
Currently, there are two anti-hair loss drugs on the market, finasteride and minoxidil . These two drugs Approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for androgenetic alopecia, finasteride is approved only for men, but in reality, neither drug is universally effective and needs to be taken daily to maintain its clinical effects. Maksim Plikus, professor of cell biology at
, said: "There is an urgent need for new and effective drugs for hair loss . We have experimentally verified the clinical potential of SCUBE3. SCUBE3, which is naturally produced by dermal papilla fibroblasts, is an ideal next-generation candidate for the treatment of hair loss." Drugs. Further research will be carried out in the Plikus Laboratory founded by Professor Maksim Plikus and the biotechnology company Amplifica Holding Group he founded.
Dr. Maksim Plikus
It is worth mentioning that funding for this work comes from the LEO Foundation. and the Chan Zuckerberg Foundation. Currently, the world's top rich are focusing on the biomedical field. Zuckerberg's investment of hundreds of millions of dollars indicates that drugs derived from SCUBE3 may be available to everyone as soon as possible.
