A new study by researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center has shown
that, for the first time, Wnt signaling, already known to control
many biological processes, between hair follicles and melanocyte
stem cells can dictate hair pigmentation.
The study was published in the June 11, 2011 issue of the journal
Cell.
The
research was led by Mayumi Ito, PhD, assistant professor in the
Ronald O. Pereleman Department of Dermatology at NYU Langone. We
have known for decades that hair follicle stem cells and
pigment-producing melanocycte cells collaborate to produce colored
hair, but the underlying reasons were unknown, said Dr. Ito.
We discovered Wnt signaling is essential for
coordinated actions of these two stem cell lineages and critical for
hair pigmentation. The study suggests the manipulation of Wnt
signaling may be a novel strategy for targeting pigmentation such as
graying hair. The research study also illustrates a model for tissue
regeneration.
The human body has many types of stem cells that have the potential
to regenerate other organs, said Dr. Ito. The methods behind
communication between stem cells of hair and color during hair
replacement may give us important clues to regenerate complex organs
containing many different types of cells.
Using genetic mouse models, researchers were able to examine how Wnt
signaling pathways enabled both hair follicle stem cells and
melanocyte stem cells to work together to generate hair growth and
produce hair color. Research also showed the depletion (or
inhibition or abnormal) Wnt signaling in hair follicle stem cells
not only inhibits hair re-growth but also prevents melanocytes stem
cell activation required for producing hair color. The lack of Wnt
activation in melanocyte stem cells leads to depigmented or gray
hair.
The study raises the possibility that Wnt signaling is a key pathway
for the regulation of melanocyte stem cells and shows how melanocyte
behavior is associated with hair regeneration. This insight provides
further understanding of diseases in which melanocytes are either
appropriately lost such as hair graying or undergo uncontrolled cell
growth as in melanoma.
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