Application of Hair Follicle Bulge Stem Cells in Wound Healing

Despite the significant advances in regenerative medicine, wound healing has remained a challenging clinical problem. Skin is the largest human organ with many vital functions; therefore, any damage to its normal structure should be treated as soon as possible. Easy access to skin stem cells has created a lot of excitement in therapeutic applications. “Cell therapy” is considered a novel method in regenerative medicine, especially when conventional treatments fail. Candidate cell populations for therapeutic applications include embryonic, induced pluripotent, adult mesenchymal, and hair follicle stem cells. It is possible to differentiate stem cells separated from the bulge area of hair follicle into neurons, melanocytes, keratinocytes, glia and smooth muscle cells that are negative for the keratinocyte marker kr15. This review discusses the plasticity of skin stem cells, especially stem cells located in the hair follicle and their involvement in wound healing, gene expression profile in wound healing, hair follicle stem cells, and their surrounding epidermis. Moreover, the ability of hair follicle stem cells for treating wounds and regenerative medicine is going to be discussed. Eventually we suggest the hair follicle as an ideal source of stem cells for cell therapy and regenerative medicine because they are abundant with easy access and great differentiation ability.