A new breakthrough by British scientists has raised hope for those
suffering with hair loss, and the therapy may even provide help to
victims of burns.
The results of the tests could pave the way for more hair loss
treatments for both men and women, after results demonstrated it was
possible to grow new hair follicles from human skin cells – basically
the cells that contain the ‘instruction book’ for growing new hair.
Tests are still at an early stage, but
the scientists from Durham University in the UK and Columbia University
in the U.S. claim that their findings represent a huge breakthrough in
treating hair loss that effects millions of men and women around the
world, often causing a great deal of distress.
Not only this, but it seems a 40-year wait could be over in the
futile efforts to successfully regenerate the crucial structures in the
skin that enable hair to grow.
Human hair follicles are incredibly difficult to replicate in a
laboratory environment, but the new technique has shown evidence they
can be stimulated to grow in skin tissue and also to generate hair
shafts.
Currently, expensive hair transplants notoriously used by footballer Wayne Rooney
involve the surgeon transplanting hair follicles from the back of the
head (where there is plentiful hair) to where it is needed at the front.
Therefore, they are simply redistributing already present hair compared
to the new technique which could significantly boost the amount of
hairs on the head.
Columbia University researcher Dr Angela Christiano, herself a
sufferer of alopecia and experiences clumps of hair falling out, said
the research “has the potential to transform the medical treatment of
hair loss”.
“Our method…has the potential to actually grow new follicles using a
patient’s own cells. This could greatly expand the utility of
hair-restoration surgery to women and to younger patients – now it is
largely restricted to the treatment of male-pattern baldness
in patients with stable disease. It could make hair transplantation
available to individuals with a limited number of follicles, including
those with female-pattern hair loss, scarring alopecia and hair loss due to burns,” she said.
The team of scientists started extracting tiny cells called dermal
papillae from strips of human hair cells. These cells are located at the
base of a hair and contain the ‘instruction book’ for the successful
growth of new hair.
Next, they cloned the cells in a dish, making sure they had several
copies of each cell. Similar procedures have been done previously but
without any results in getting the cells grow hair after they have been
put back into skin.
The Anglo-American team decided to turn the dish of cells upside
down, to help them to form into the clumps found in nature. These clumps
were transplanted into human skin grafted onto the backs of mice.
It was found that the cells from each of the seven human donors grew hairs and in some cases, the tufts broke through the skin.
Although the hairs were white in colour, Durham researcher Professor
Colin Jahoda is optimistic it should be possible to create coloured hair
and by using a sample of a person’s own cells, any new hair should be
very similar in texture and curliness.
“It’s a key step because it is saying that you can multiply the
process. It’s not just about one-for-one replacement. But you need to
get hair that is the right colour and texture and this will need further
work before human clinical trials can begin,” he said.
The cost to patients is still yet to be determined as clinical trials
need to be carried out first. However, it is likely to be cheaper than
hair transplants which can range anywhere in price from £6,000 all the
way up to £30,000 per patient.
There is a good news for everyone, if anyone suffering from hair loss then hair regrowth is possible and there are several steps involved with hair regrowth treatment. Thanks for your post.
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