The establishment and characterization of immortalized human dermal papilla cells and their hair growth promoting effects

Abstract

The epithelial–mesenchymal interactions are important in the development and physiology of hair [1]. The two key components are follicular epithelial cells and dermal papilla cells (DPCs). The dermal papilla is a condensed structure of specialized mesenchymal cells at the base of hair and is known to play a critical role in the induction and control of hair growth through paracrine and autocrine mechanisms, not only in normal hair cycle, but also in diseased conditions such as androgenetic alopecia [1,2].