Emerging biomedical engineering strategies for hair follicle regeneration
Hair follicle undergoes cyclical regeneration that relies on the spatiotemporal coordination of epithelial-mesenchymal interactions and multiple signaling pathways. However, hair follicle homeostasis is susceptible to disruption by various endogenous and exogenous factors, leading to hair loss disea...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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KeAi Communications Co., Ltd.
2025-11-01
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| Series: | Bioactive Materials |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2452199X25002877 |
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| author | Xinyue Cao Minhui Lu Ning Li Lijun Cai Yu Wang Yuanjin Zhao |
| author_facet | Xinyue Cao Minhui Lu Ning Li Lijun Cai Yu Wang Yuanjin Zhao |
| author_sort | Xinyue Cao |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Hair follicle undergoes cyclical regeneration that relies on the spatiotemporal coordination of epithelial-mesenchymal interactions and multiple signaling pathways. However, hair follicle homeostasis is susceptible to disruption by various endogenous and exogenous factors, leading to hair loss diseases like androgenetic alopecia and scarring alopecia. Traditional pharmacological treatments and surgical transplantation still face challenges in meeting clinical demands because of unstable therapeutic efficacy, limited donor resources, and postoperative complications. In this condition, biomedical engineering has advanced hair follicle regeneration from “replacement therapy” to “functional reconstruction” by integrating interdisciplinary approaches such as stem cell technology, tissue engineering, and modern engineering technology. This review systematically summarizes the latest advancements in biomedical engineering technology in the realm of hair follicle regeneration. We first elucidate hair follicles' structure, cyclic regulatory mechanisms, and main impact factors. Subsequently, we evaluate the advanced in vivo hair follicle regeneration strategies, including cell transplantation, cell reprogramming, biomaterial delivery and other strategies. We then focus on the in vitro hair follicle organoids’ success construction and their applications in hair growth, drug screening, disease modeling and mechanistic studies. Finally, we critically discuss the technical limitations and prospects in this field, providing a theoretical framework for the innovation of future regenerative medicine. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-2232f24d9b1045e5b5889c7d134d055a |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2452-199X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-11-01 |
| publisher | KeAi Communications Co., Ltd. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Bioactive Materials |
| spelling | doaj-art-2232f24d9b1045e5b5889c7d134d055a2025-08-20T02:36:13ZengKeAi Communications Co., Ltd.Bioactive Materials2452-199X2025-11-01538411310.1016/j.bioactmat.2025.06.051Emerging biomedical engineering strategies for hair follicle regenerationXinyue Cao0Minhui Lu1Ning Li2Lijun Cai3Yu Wang4Yuanjin Zhao5Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, 210096, ChinaDepartment of Rheumatology and Immunology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, 210096, ChinaDepartment of Rheumatology and Immunology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, 210096, ChinaDepartment of Rheumatology and Immunology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, 210096, China; Corresponding author.Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, 210096, China; Wenzhou Institute, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wenzhou, Zhejiang, 325001, China; Corresponding author. Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, 210096, China.Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, 210096, China; Wenzhou Institute, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wenzhou, Zhejiang, 325001, China; Corresponding author. Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, 210096, China.Hair follicle undergoes cyclical regeneration that relies on the spatiotemporal coordination of epithelial-mesenchymal interactions and multiple signaling pathways. However, hair follicle homeostasis is susceptible to disruption by various endogenous and exogenous factors, leading to hair loss diseases like androgenetic alopecia and scarring alopecia. Traditional pharmacological treatments and surgical transplantation still face challenges in meeting clinical demands because of unstable therapeutic efficacy, limited donor resources, and postoperative complications. In this condition, biomedical engineering has advanced hair follicle regeneration from “replacement therapy” to “functional reconstruction” by integrating interdisciplinary approaches such as stem cell technology, tissue engineering, and modern engineering technology. This review systematically summarizes the latest advancements in biomedical engineering technology in the realm of hair follicle regeneration. We first elucidate hair follicles' structure, cyclic regulatory mechanisms, and main impact factors. Subsequently, we evaluate the advanced in vivo hair follicle regeneration strategies, including cell transplantation, cell reprogramming, biomaterial delivery and other strategies. We then focus on the in vitro hair follicle organoids’ success construction and their applications in hair growth, drug screening, disease modeling and mechanistic studies. Finally, we critically discuss the technical limitations and prospects in this field, providing a theoretical framework for the innovation of future regenerative medicine.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2452199X25002877Biomedical strategiesHair follicle regenerationTissue engineeringStem cellOrganoid |
| spellingShingle | Xinyue Cao Minhui Lu Ning Li Lijun Cai Yu Wang Yuanjin Zhao Emerging biomedical engineering strategies for hair follicle regeneration Bioactive Materials Biomedical strategies Hair follicle regeneration Tissue engineering Stem cell Organoid |
| title | Emerging biomedical engineering strategies for hair follicle regeneration |
| title_full | Emerging biomedical engineering strategies for hair follicle regeneration |
| title_fullStr | Emerging biomedical engineering strategies for hair follicle regeneration |
| title_full_unstemmed | Emerging biomedical engineering strategies for hair follicle regeneration |
| title_short | Emerging biomedical engineering strategies for hair follicle regeneration |
| title_sort | emerging biomedical engineering strategies for hair follicle regeneration |
| topic | Biomedical strategies Hair follicle regeneration Tissue engineering Stem cell Organoid |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2452199X25002877 |
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