The thinning top: why old people have less hair

Sashank K Reddy; Luis A Garza

doi:10.1038/jid.2014.172

The thinning top: why old people have less hair

J Invest Dermatol. 2014 Aug;134(8):2068-2069. doi: 10.1038/jid.2014.172.

Authors

Sashank K Reddy¹, Luis A Garza²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Dermatology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Department of Plastic Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
² Department of Dermatology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA. Electronic address: LAG@jhmi.edu.

Abstract

Changes in the hair cycle underlie age-related alopecia, but the causative mechanisms have remained unclear. Chen et al. point to an imbalance between stem cell-activating and -inhibitory signals as the key determinant of age-related regenerative decline. Further, they identify a secreted protein, follistatin, that may be able to shift the balance toward renewal.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
Comment

MeSH terms

Aging / physiology*
Animals
Follistatin / physiology*
Hair Follicle / physiology*
Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins / physiology*
Proto-Oncogene Proteins / physiology*
Regeneration / physiology*

Substances

Dkk1 protein, mouse
Follistatin
Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins
Proto-Oncogene Proteins
Sfrp4 protein, mouse

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances

Grants and funding