University of Pennsylvania researchers have published a paper in Nature describing a new way to regenerate hair follicles and potentially treat baldness. The technology is licensed by Follica, a company specializing in hair growth.
The research indicates a relationship between hair growth and the immune system. Researchers found that, after wounding the mice they were testing, they could trick the cells regenerating the epidermis into growing new hair.
Any potential human application is still years away, although Follica has run a successful human trial. This is good news for those of us in our twenties, as this research will probably only have market applications after a second human trial, patent litigation, FDA approval, and a few years of waiting to see if the first users sprout tentacles or something.
