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Model Hair
22 May 2018

Model Hair

Crew cuts, bobs, dreadlocks and Afros; there’s endless ways to style your hair. Whichever look you pick, at the root of it the same process plays out. Hair grows out from hair follicles in the scalp. These follicles pass through different phases, including active growth, anagen, and massive cell death, catagen. Researchers grew human hair follicles in the lab as mini-organs (pictured) to investigate these processes. They found that during anagen considerable amounts of autophagy (red) – the controlled destruction of cells – occurs, as revealed by fluorescent microscopy. Preventing autophagy, by reducing levels of a gene vital to this process, hastens the onset of catagen. Conversely, applying the key ingredients of an anti-hair loss product enhances autophagy and prolongs anagen. This mini-organ system highlights the importance of autophagy in hair growth but also provides a useful model for studying autophagy, whose function in the human body is poorly understood.

Written by Lux Fatimathas

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BPoD stands for Biomedical Picture of the Day. Managed by the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences until Jul 2023, it is now run independently by a dedicated team of scientists and writers. The website aims to engage everyone, young and old, in the wonders of biology, and its influence on medicine. The ever-growing archive of more than 4000 research images documents over a decade of progress. Explore the collection and see what you discover. Images are kindly provided for inclusion on this website through the generosity of scientists across the globe.

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BPoD is also available in Catalan at www.bpod.cat with translations by the University of Valencia.