Baldness (Photo : Reuters)
Baldness might actually have a cure, but it involves plucking the remaining hair, a new study says.
Researchers from the University of Southern California found that out eliminating hair can lead to the growth of more hair. They tried plucking 200 hairs in a specific pattern on a mouse's back and 1,300 hairs grew right back.
Lead researcher Cheng-Ming Chuong said that the meticulous experiment is a good model of how one basic research can be very valuable and that it could lead to new treatments for the alopecia, another name for hair loss, according to CBS.
The research team believes that the method relies on a stimulate system called "quorum sensing." Once the hair follicle is damaged by plucking, it triggers a release of inflammatory proteins which sends out a kind of distress signal, which attracts certain molecules that promote hair growth in both undamaged and damaged follicles.
Chuong said that their findings might have broader implications. For instance, they theorize that minor damage to body organs might stimulate regeneration, but it is not as observable compared to hair growth.
However, some are still skeptical over the new study, which is published in the Cell journal, according to Medical News Today.
Professor Chris Mason from the University College London in U.K. said that the researchers are smart for pointing out quorum sensing in their hair regeneration study. But, there is still no clear and direct evidence on its effectiveness for human hair growth.
Instead, Mason advised that men, or even women, do not wait until they go completely bald before opting for hair growth treatments and medicine.
The study follows another hair regeneration research from the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute in January where the potential of pluripotent stem cells is highlighted.
