Related resources
Full-text held externally
Search for item elsewhere
University researcher(s)
Academic department(s)
The hair follicle as a dynamic miniorgan.
Schneider M, Schmidt-Ullrich R, Paus RR
Curr Biol. 2009;19( 3):R132-42.
Access to files
Full-text and supplementary files are not available from Manchester eScholar. Full-text is available externally using the following links:
Full-text held externally
Abstract
Hair is a primary characteristic of mammals, and exerts a wide range of functions including thermoregulation, physical protection, sensory activity, and social interactions. The hair shaft consists of terminally differentiated keratinocytes that are produced by the hair follicle. Hair follicle development takes place during fetal skin development and relies on tightly regulated ectodermal-mesodermal interactions. After birth, mature and actively growing hair follicles eventually become anchored in the subcutis, and periodically regenerate by spontaneously undergoing repetitive cycles of growth (anagen), apoptosis-driven regression (catagen), and relative quiescence (telogen). Our molecular understanding of hair follicle biology relies heavily on mouse mutants with abnormalities in hair structure, growth, and/or pigmentation. These mice have allowed novel insights into important general molecular and cellular processes beyond skin and hair biology, ranging from organ induction, morphogenesis and regeneration, to pigment and stem cell biology, cell proliferation, migration and apoptosis. In this review, we present basic concepts of hair follicle biology and summarize important recent advances in the field.