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THURSDAY, March 11 (HealthDay News) -- Scientists have found a type of stem cell tucked away in hair follicles that is capable of morphing into all three types of skin cells.
"They are saying they have found the earliest stem cell, in the hair follicles, which actually leads to making epidermis, sebaceous tissue and hair follicles," explained Paul Sanberg, distinguished professor of neurosurgery and director of the University of South Florida Center for Aging and Brain Repair in Tampa. "These cells in adult hair follicles are, in fact, helping to make new skin."
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"If we understand the biology better, we might be able to develop new treatments for skin and perhaps even hair replacement," Sanberg added.
The European authors of the study, which appears in the March 12 issue of Science, believe the findings may lead to new, improved methods of wound repair and even skin grafts.
Others agreed.
"It's probably important to know this with respect to making better artificial skin," said Kevin Eggan, chief scientific officer of The New York Stem Cell Foundation and associate professor of stem cell and regenerative biology at Harvard University in Boston.
Current skin grafts such as those made for burn victims are not fully functional, as they have no hair follicles or sweat glands, he explained.
"These might lead to more functional skin grafts," Eggan said.
Three different types of cells make up the skin: hair follicles, sebaceous glands and the intervening tissue, called interfollicular epidermis.
All three are capable of producing more of the cell type and are therefore considered stem cells. But scientists have long been puzzled as to the origins of these stem cells.
"The skin has a remarkable ability to heal itself so people have wondered what the basis is for that regenerative capacity," Eggan said. "This has been quite a controversial subject."
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