Abstract:

Objective To investigate the possibility of hair follicle reformation induced by hair follicle bulb cells implanted into collagen/chitosan porous scaffolds in vivo, and to observe the angiogenesis in implanted scaffolds. Methods Hair follicle bulb cells obtained by enzyme digestion from the back skin of C57BL/6J mice were implanted into collagen/chitosan porous scaffolds followed by 2-week organotypic culture. Then, these collagen/chitosan porous scaffolds were transplanted subcutaneously into the dorsal skin of nude mice. Those nude mice transplanted with empty collagen/chitosan porous scaffolds served as the controls. The growth of hair was observed with naked eyes. Six weeks after the transplantation, skin samples were obtained from the recipient site and subjected to histological examination. Results Five weeks after the transplantation, hair growth was observed in the dorsal skin of nude mice. Six weeks later, histological examination revealed fully differentiated hair follicles and vessel-like structures in the center of collagen/chitosan porous scaffolds. However, the transplantation with empty collagen/chitosan porous scaffolds failed to elicit the same response. No hair or follicles were observed in the control mice along with small number of vessel-like structures. Conclusions Hair follicle bulb cells implanted into collagen/chitosan porous scaffolds in vivo could induce hair follicle reformation and promote the formation of vessel-like structure in the scaffold center.