Genetic Factor Discovery Allows Adult Skin To Regenerate Like A Newborn’s
A newly discovered genetic factor allows the adult skin to heal itself just like that of a newborn baby. Researchers at Washington State University made a discovery that could have implications for skin wound healing and preventing some aging processes.
Researchers identified a factor in a study published on September 29, 2020 in the journal eLife that acts as a molecular switching in the skin and hair follicles of baby mice. This switch controls their development during the first seven days of life. The switch is largely turned off once the skin has formed and stays off in adult tissues. The skin of adult mice was able heal wounds without leaving scars when the switch was turned on in specialized cells. The skin was reformed to include fur and create goosebumps. This ability is not present in adult human scars.
Ryan Driskell is an assistant professor at the School of Molecular Biosciences of WSU. He said, \”We were able take the innate ability of neonatal, young skin to regenerate, and transfer this ability to older skin.\” \”We have demonstrated in principle that such regeneration is possible.\”
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Genetic Factor Discovery Enables Adult Skin to Regenerate Like a Newborn Baby’s
