Su Bin Yoon
An average person loses around 50 to 100 strands of hair each day, but the hair follicle stem cells replenish the lost hair by continuously dividing (AAD 2021). An inability to maintain this homeostatic process results in hair loss. Hair loss can be a natural part of the aging process, a symptom of a disease, a side effect of medication, or a genetic predisposition. Hair loss is often regarded as a cosmetic concern than a significant medical condition (Kailas 2018). However, it affects almost every person in the world in various forms. It is difficult to completely understand whether there is a causal relationship between hair loss and psychological outcomes due to the interplay between psychological distress, hair loss, and mental disorders. At the very least, hair loss is correlated to depression, anxiety, and social phobia (Khawar Hussain et al. 2019). Regardless of how hair loss is caused or perceived, it still has profound psychological consequences beyond the surface (Kailas 2018).
To understand hair loss, one must understand the hair cycle. There are three phases in the process: anagen, catagen, and telogen (Alonso and Fuchs 2006). About 90% of the hair is in the anagen phase, the active growing phase. The rest of the hair follicles are either under regression (catagen) or resting in telogen. The hair is naturally released from the follicle when it reaches a terminal position after cycles of growth and regression (Alonso and Fuchs 2006). Thus, healthy individuals also shed some hair daily. A defective hair cycle has a broken balance among these three phases, such as reduced anagen, premature entry into catagen, and prolonged telogen (Choi 2018). Many factors can cause hair loss. It can be due to hormones, stress, concurrent diseases, pollutants, and nutrition deficiency, among many other reasons.
Despite affecting virtually every individual, there is no magic cure for hair loss. There are FDA-approved treatments like Minoxidil and Finasteride (BBC Ideas 2019). Hair transplant procedures can help manage the symptoms and improve miniaturization but are costly compared to other options. The discovery of two FDA-approved medications, Minoxidil and Finasteride, was unintentional, meaning the treatments work for a reason we do not understand (BBC Ideas 2019). Thus, the information we have regarding hair development is very limited despite the discovery of these two hair loss medications in the 1980s. Today, no single cure will fix all types of hair loss altogether. Since there is no cure, treatments and supplements become a recurring expense for those with hair loss. For instance, people spend $8.5 billion annually on hair loss treatments, procedures, hairstyles, and wigs. These expenditures highlight how deeply hair loss impacts individuals and the lengths they are willing to go to.
Recently, researchers succeeded in grafting skin organoids from human pluripotent stem cells onto nude mice and seeing hair growth from these structures (Lee et al. 2020). With more than 50% of the grafts successfully growing human hair, this could mean that the researchers can study an unlimited amount of human hair follicles without having to harvest them from human subjects. Even though the organoids could not replicate some of the features, such as immune cells typically found in skin cells, other tissues like sweat glands and nerves associated with hair follicles developed from the grafts (Lee et al. 2020). Not only does it have the potential as a new source of human hair follicles for research, but it is also a step towards a cure for hair loss. The key to a breakthrough in hair loss treatment is understanding how the hair follicle works: a complex structure that we do not fully understand yet.
The new exciting advance in the hair follicle stem cell grafts opens up opportunities for other related research studies. One such study could be on improving the quality and success rate of grafting skin organoids to yield more human hair. Another study would be on the application of these grafts in hair loss treatment, evaluating the advantages and challenges we may face in using this technology on human subjects, such as the efficacy, side effects, and cost. Nevertheless, further research in this field of study may soon lead us to an FDA-approved treatment option for hair loss for the first time in about four decades.
Works Cited
AAD. 2021. Do you have hair loss or hair shedding? Am Acad Dermatol Assoc. [accessed 2021 Mar 11]. https://www.aad.org/public/diseases/hair-loss/insider/shedding.
Alonso L, Fuchs E. 2006. The hair cycle. J Cell Sci. 119(3):391–393. doi:10.1242/jcs.02793.
BBC Ideas. 2019. Why is there no cure for hair loss? | BBC Ideas. [accessed 2021 Mar 11]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFEnmJx6bmM.
Bilodeau K. 2020 Mar 27. Thinning hair in women: Why it happens and what helps. Harv Health Blog. [accessed 2021 Mar 11]. https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/thinning-hair-in-women-why-it-happens-and-what-helps-2020032719267.
Choi B. 2018. Hair-Growth Potential of Ginseng and Its Major Metabolites: A Review on Its Molecular Mechanisms. Int J Mol Sci. 19(9):2703. doi:10.3390/ijms19092703.
Kailas A. 2018. Hair Loss: It’s Not Just a Cosmetic Concern. Acad Med. 93(6):936. doi:10.1097/ACM.0000000000002218.
Khawar Hussain, Maria-Angeliki Gkini, Amanda Oakley, Gus Mitchell. 2019. Psychological effects of hair loss. DernNet NZ. [accessed 2021 Mar 18]. https://dermnetnz.org/topics/psychological-effects-of-hair-loss/.
Lee J, Rabbani CC, Gao H, Steinhart MR, Woodruff BM, Pflum ZE, Kim A, Heller S, Liu Y, Shipchandler TZ, et al. 2020. Hair-bearing human skin generated entirely from pluripotent stem cells. Nature. 582(7812):399–404. doi:10.1038/s41586-020-2352-3.
To understand hair loss, one must understand the hair cycle. There are three phases in the process: anagen, catagen, and telogen (Alonso and Fuchs 2006). About 90% of the hair is in the anagen phase, the active growing phase. The rest of the hair follicles are either under regression (catagen) or resting in telogen. The hair is naturally released from the follicle when it reaches a terminal position after cycles of growth and regression (Alonso and Fuchs 2006). Thus, healthy individuals also shed some hair daily. A defective hair cycle has a broken balance among these three phases, such as reduced anagen, premature entry into catagen, and prolonged telogen (Choi 2018). Many factors can cause hair loss. It can be due to hormones, stress, concurrent diseases, pollutants, and nutrition deficiency, among many other reasons.
Despite affecting virtually every individual, there is no magic cure for hair loss. There are FDA-approved treatments like Minoxidil and Finasteride (BBC Ideas 2019). Hair transplant procedures can help manage the symptoms and improve miniaturization but are costly compared to other options. The discovery of two FDA-approved medications, Minoxidil and Finasteride, was unintentional, meaning the treatments work for a reason we do not understand (BBC Ideas 2019). Thus, the information we have regarding hair development is very limited despite the discovery of these two hair loss medications in the 1980s. Today, no single cure will fix all types of hair loss altogether. Since there is no cure, treatments and supplements become a recurring expense for those with hair loss. For instance, people spend $8.5 billion annually on hair loss treatments, procedures, hairstyles, and wigs. These expenditures highlight how deeply hair loss impacts individuals and the lengths they are willing to go to.
Recently, researchers succeeded in grafting skin organoids from human pluripotent stem cells onto nude mice and seeing hair growth from these structures (Lee et al. 2020). With more than 50% of the grafts successfully growing human hair, this could mean that the researchers can study an unlimited amount of human hair follicles without having to harvest them from human subjects. Even though the organoids could not replicate some of the features, such as immune cells typically found in skin cells, other tissues like sweat glands and nerves associated with hair follicles developed from the grafts (Lee et al. 2020). Not only does it have the potential as a new source of human hair follicles for research, but it is also a step towards a cure for hair loss. The key to a breakthrough in hair loss treatment is understanding how the hair follicle works: a complex structure that we do not fully understand yet.
The new exciting advance in the hair follicle stem cell grafts opens up opportunities for other related research studies. One such study could be on improving the quality and success rate of grafting skin organoids to yield more human hair. Another study would be on the application of these grafts in hair loss treatment, evaluating the advantages and challenges we may face in using this technology on human subjects, such as the efficacy, side effects, and cost. Nevertheless, further research in this field of study may soon lead us to an FDA-approved treatment option for hair loss for the first time in about four decades.
Works Cited
AAD. 2021. Do you have hair loss or hair shedding? Am Acad Dermatol Assoc. [accessed 2021 Mar 11]. https://www.aad.org/public/diseases/hair-loss/insider/shedding.
Alonso L, Fuchs E. 2006. The hair cycle. J Cell Sci. 119(3):391–393. doi:10.1242/jcs.02793.
BBC Ideas. 2019. Why is there no cure for hair loss? | BBC Ideas. [accessed 2021 Mar 11]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFEnmJx6bmM.
Bilodeau K. 2020 Mar 27. Thinning hair in women: Why it happens and what helps. Harv Health Blog. [accessed 2021 Mar 11]. https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/thinning-hair-in-women-why-it-happens-and-what-helps-2020032719267.
Choi B. 2018. Hair-Growth Potential of Ginseng and Its Major Metabolites: A Review on Its Molecular Mechanisms. Int J Mol Sci. 19(9):2703. doi:10.3390/ijms19092703.
Kailas A. 2018. Hair Loss: It’s Not Just a Cosmetic Concern. Acad Med. 93(6):936. doi:10.1097/ACM.0000000000002218.
Khawar Hussain, Maria-Angeliki Gkini, Amanda Oakley, Gus Mitchell. 2019. Psychological effects of hair loss. DernNet NZ. [accessed 2021 Mar 18]. https://dermnetnz.org/topics/psychological-effects-of-hair-loss/.
Lee J, Rabbani CC, Gao H, Steinhart MR, Woodruff BM, Pflum ZE, Kim A, Heller S, Liu Y, Shipchandler TZ, et al. 2020. Hair-bearing human skin generated entirely from pluripotent stem cells. Nature. 582(7812):399–404. doi:10.1038/s41586-020-2352-3.
Proudly powered by Weebly