Baldness Cured! Baldiness.com For Sale

Not really… at least not yet.

I came across two stories related to the formation of hair follicles. First, we head east (Well, I head east. At least I think I go east. Either way I’ll get there eventually. Pluto may not be a planet, but the world is still round.) to the University of Manchester. Research led by Dr. Denis Headon has uncovered the process that determines which embryonic skin cells turn into hair follicles. It’s got something to do with genetics and proteins and embryonic skin cells. Maybe Hsien can explain it to me. At any rate, they’ve been able to manipulate the process in mice to make hairier mice. (Oh great, furry mice! My mother-in-law will love this.) The speculation is that this discovery holds the possibility to make furrier people.

Now, back the other way, stopping by home for a bite to eat, and onto Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU, not to be confused with OSU, who play Texas tomorrow. Go Bucks!) Here the research team, led by Dr. Xiao-Jing Wang, has “uncovered a pathway through which a gene’s over-expression causes skin stem cells to switch from creating hair follicles to creating sebaceous glands.” Ah… now this holds promise for a Bald Man. Of course there are more important medical implications for both discoveries, things like cancer, Alzheimer’s, etc. But, if in the process of saving the world we can also save me from sunburn, I’ll take it.