In a study appearing in the January 4, 2006 issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation, Jonathan Vogel and colleagues from the National Cancer Institute successfully isolated and characterized genes expressed by human hair follicle stem cells.

The isolation, cultivation, and propagation of these stem cells are important for tissue-engineering approaches to treating disorders of the hair and skin.
Stem cells in the skin and hair follicles are the ultimate source of cells that regenerate the skin and of the growth of new hairs. Vogel and colleagues used sophisticated techniques to engraft human scalp tissue onto mice and then isolated and examined living human hair follicle stem cells. The authors identified a panel of marker proteins expressed on the surface of these elusive cells that can be used in future research to aid in their identification. They go on to note important differences between mouse and human stem cell markers.

In an accompanying commentary, George Cotsarelis from University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, discusses the importance of these results: "investigators can now readily extract and study very specific follicular cell types for the ability to regenerate hair and skin, with the hope of developing novel methods for treating skin and hair disease."