Towards expansion of human hair follicle stem cells in vitro

Bulge-Derived Epithelial Cells Isolated from Human Hair Follicles Using Enzymatic Digestion or Explants Result in Comparable Tissue-Engineered Skin

Hair follicle stem cells, located in the bulge region of the outer root sheath, are multipotent epithelial stem cells capable of differentiating into epidermal, sebaceous gland, and hair shaft cells. Efficient culturing of these cells is crucial for advancements in dermatology, regenerative medicine, and skin model development. This investigation aimed to develop a protocol for isolating enriched bulge-derived epithelial cells from scalp specimens to produce tissue-engineered substitutes. The epithelium, including hair follicles, was separated from the dermis using thermolysin, followed by microdissection of the bulge region. Epithelial stem cells were isolated using enzymatic dissociation to create a single-cell suspension and compared with the direct explant culture and a benchmark method which isolates cells from the epidermis and pilosebaceous units. After 8 days of culture, the enzymatic digestion of microdissected bulges yielded 5.3 times more epithelial cells compared to explant cultures and proliferated faster than the benchmark method. Cells cultured from all methods exhibited comparable morphology and growth rates. The fully stratified epidermis of tissue-engineered skin was similar, indicating comparable differentiation potential. This enzymatic digestion method improved early-stage cell recovery and expansion while maintaining keratinocyte functionality, offering an efficient hair bulge cell-extraction technique for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine applications.

Targeting the Complexity of In Vitro Skin Models: A Review of Cutting-Edge Developments

Skin in vitro models offer much promise for research, testing drugs, cosmetics, and medical devices, reducing animal testing and extensive clinical trials. There are several in vitro approaches to mimicking human skin behavior, ranging from simple cell monolayer to complex organotypic and bioengineered 3-dimensional models. Some have been approved for preclinical studies in cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and chemicals. However, development of physiologically reliable in vitro human skin models remains in its infancy. This review reports on advances in in vitro complex skin models to study skin homeostasis, aging, and skin disease.

Establishment of an Efficient Primary Culture System for Human Hair Follicle Stem Cells Using the Rho-Associated Protein Kinase Inhibitor Y-27632

Background

Hair follicle tissue engineering is a promising strategy for treating hair loss. Human hair follicle stem cells (hHFSCs), which play a key role in the hair cycle, have potential applications in regenerative medicine. However, previous studies did not achieve efficient hHFSC expansion in vitro using feeder cells. Therefore, there is a need to develop an efficient primary culture system for the expansion and maintenance of hHFSCs.

Methods

The hHFSCs were obtained by two-step proteolytic digestion combined with microscopy. The cell culture dishes were coated with human fibronectin and inoculated with hHFSCs. The hHFSCs were harvested using a differential enrichment procedure. The effect of Rho-associated protein kinase (ROCK) inhibitor Y-27632, supplemented in keratinocyte serum-free medium (K-SFM), on adhesion, proliferation, and stemness of hHFSCs and the underlying molecular mechanisms were evaluated.

Results

The hHFSCs cultured in K-SFM, supplemented with Y-27632, exhibited enhanced adhesion and proliferation. Additionally, Y-27632 treatment maintained the stemness of hHFSCs and promoted the ability of hHFSCs to regenerate hair follicles in vivo. However, Y-27632-induced proliferation and stemness in hHFSCs were conditional and reversible. Furthermore, Y-27632 maintained propagation and stemness of hHFSCs through the ERK/MAPK pathway.

Conclusion

An efficient short-term culture system for primary hHFSCs was successfully established using human fibronectin and the ROCK inhibitor Y-27632, which promoted the proliferation, maintained the stemness of hHFSCs and promoted the ability to regenerate hair follicles in vivo. The xenofree culturing method used in this study provided a large number of high-quality seed cells, which have applications in hair follicle tissue engineering and stem cell therapy.

Stem cell therapy as a novel therapeutic intervention for resistant cases of alopecia areata and androgenetic alopecia

BACKGROUND

Management of alopecia areata (AA) and androgenetic alopecia (AGA) is often challenging as patients may be resistant to currently available modalities of treatment. The use of stem cells may be a novel option for resistant cases.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the safety and efficacy of the use of autologous bone marrow derived mononuclear cells (including stem cells) as compared to follicular stems cells for the management of resistant cases of AA and AGA.

METHODS

This study included 40 patients (20 AA patients and 20 AGA patients), all patients were treated with a single session of intradermal injection of autologous stem cells (SCs) therapy. They were divided into four groups according to the applied modality [either autologous bone marrow derived mononuclear cells (bone marrow mononuclear cells [BMMCs] or autologous follicular stem cells [FSC]).

RESULTS

Six months after stem cell therapy (SCT) injection, there was a significant improvement, confirmed by immunostaining and digital dermoscopy. The mean improvement in all groups was "very good". There was no significant difference between both methods in either type of alopecia. No serious adverse events were reported.

CONCLUSION

Autologous BMMCs and FSC seem to be a safe tolerable and effective treatment for the management of both resistant AA and AGA.

Ovine Hair Follicle Stem Cells Derived from Single Vibrissae Reconstitute Haired Skin

Hair follicle stem cells (HFSCs) possess fascinating self-renewal capacity and multipotency, which play important roles in mammalian hair growth and skin wound repair. Although HFSCs from other mammalian species have been obtained, the characteristics of ovine HFSCs, as well as the methods to isolate them have not been well addressed. Here, we report an efficient strategy to obtain multipotent ovine HFSCs. Through microdissection and organ culture, we obtained keratinocytes that grew from the bulge area of vibrissa hair follicles, and even abundant keratinocytes were harvested from a single hair follicle. These bulge-derived keratinocytes are highly positive for Krt15, Krt14, Tp63, Krt19 and Itga6; in addition to their strong proliferation abilities in vitro, these keratinocytes formed new epidermis, hair follicles and sebaceous glands in skin reconstitution experiments, showing that these are HFSCs from the bulge outer root sheath. Taken together, we developed an efficient in vitro system to enrich ovine HFSCs, providing enough HFSCs for the investigations about the ovine hair cycle, aiming to promote wool production in the future.

Reactive Oxygen Species in Mesenchymal Stem Cell Aging: Implication to Lung Diseases

MSCs have become an emerging cell source with their immune modulation, high proliferation rate, and differentiation potential; indeed, they have been challenged in clinical trials. Recently, it has shown that ROS play a dual role as both deleterious and beneficial species depending on their concentration in MSCs. Various environmental stresses-induced excessive production of ROS triggers cellular senescence and abnormal differentiation on MSCs. Moreover, MSCs have been suggested to participate in the treatment of ALI/ARDS and COPD as a major cause of high morbidity and mortality. Therapeutic mechanisms of MSCs in the treatment of ARDS/COPD were focused on cell engraftment and paracrine action. However, ROS-mediated therapeutic mechanisms of MSCs still remain largely unknown. Here, we review the key factors associated with cell cycle and chromatin remodeling to accelerate or delay the MSC aging process. In addition, the enhanced ROS production and its associated pathophysiological pathways will be discussed along with the MSC senescence process. Furthermore, the present review highlights how the excessive amount of ROS-mediated oxidative stress might interfere with homeostasis of lungs and residual lung cells in the pathogenesis of ALI/ARDS and COPD.

Concise review: evidence for CD34 as a common marker for diverse progenitors

CD34 is a transmembrane phosphoglycoprotein, first identified on hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells. Clinically, it is associated with the selection and enrichment of hematopoietic stem cells for bone marrow transplants. Due to these historical and clinical associations, CD34 expression is almost ubiquitously related to hematopoietic cells, and it is a common misconception that CD34-positive (CD34⁺) cells in nonhematopoietic samples represent hematopoietic contamination. The prevailing school of thought states that multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells (MSC) do not express CD34. However, strong evidence demonstrates CD34 is expressed not only by MSC but by a multitude of other nonhematopoietic cell types including muscle satellite cells, corneal keratocytes, interstitial cells, epithelial progenitors, and vascular endothelial progenitors. In many cases, the CD34⁺ cells represent a small proportion of the total cell population and also indicate a distinct subset of cells with enhanced progenitor activity. Herein, we explore common traits between cells that express CD34, including associated markers, morphology and differentiation potential. We endeavor to highlight key similarities between CD34⁺ cells, with a focus on progenitor activity. A common function of CD34 has yet to be elucidated, but by analyzing and understanding links between CD34⁺ cells, we hope to be able to offer an insight into the overlapping properties of cells that express CD34. Stem Cells2014;32:1380–1389

Epidermal stem cells in orthopaedic regenerative medicine

In the last decade, great advances have been made in epidermal stem cell studies at the cellular and molecular level. These studies reported various subpopulations and differentiations existing in the epidermal stem cell. Although controversies and unknown issues remain, epidermal stem cells possess an immune-privileged property in transplantation together with easy accessibility, which is favorable for future clinical application. In this review, we will summarize the biological characteristics of epidermal stem cells, and their potential in orthopedic regenerative medicine. Epidermal stem cells play a critical role via cell replacement, and demonstrate significant translational potential in the treatment of orthopedic injuries and diseases, including treatment for wound healing, peripheral nerve and spinal cord injury, and even muscle and bone remodeling.