Faculty of Engineering, Yokohama National University, 79-5 Tokiwadai, Hodogaya-Ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa, 240-8501, Japan.
Institute of Advanced Sciences, Yokohama National University, 79-5 Tokiwadai, Hodogaya-Ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa, 240-8501, Japan.
Sci Rep. 2023 Oct 20;13(1):15587. doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-40521-x.
Oxytocin (OXT) is a neuropeptide hormone termed "love hormone" produced and released during childbirth and lactation. It is also produced in response to skin stimulation (e.g., during hugging and massaging) and music therapy. The effects of OXT on various organs have been revealed in recent years; however, the relationship between hair follicles and OXT remains unclear. In this study, we examined the effects of OXT on dermal papilla (DP) cells that control hair growth by secreting growth/regression signals. Gene expression analysis revealed that DP signature markers were significantly upregulated in DP cells treated with OXT. In addition, we tested the hair growth-promoting effects of OXT using in vitro hair follicle organoids. OXT promoted the growth of hair peg-like sprouting by upregulating the expression of growth-promoting factors, including genes encoding vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA). This study highlights the positive effects of OXT in hair follicles and may assist in the development of new treatments for alopecia.
催产素(OXT)是一种神经肽激素,被称为“爱情激素”,在分娩和哺乳期间产生和释放。它也会在皮肤受到刺激(例如拥抱和按摩时)和音乐疗法时产生。近年来,OXT 对各种器官的影响已经被揭示出来;然而,毛囊和 OXT 之间的关系尚不清楚。在这项研究中,我们研究了 OXT 对控制头发生长的真皮乳头(DP)细胞的影响,这些细胞通过分泌生长/退化信号来控制头发生长。基因表达分析显示,OXT 处理的 DP 细胞中 DP 特征标记物显著上调。此外,我们使用体外毛囊类器官测试了 OXT 的促进头发生长的作用。OXT 通过上调包括血管内皮生长因子 A(VEGFA)编码基因在内的促生长因子的表达,促进了毛发样芽的生长。这项研究强调了 OXT 在毛囊中的积极作用,可能有助于开发治疗脱发的新方法。