Dermal-epidermal interactions--follicle-derived cell populations in the study of hair-growth mechanisms.

All skin appendage development is initiated by a series of dermal-epidermal interactions. These continue to underpin adult hair follicle activities through the specialized follicular cell populations--indeed the inductive properties of isolated dermal papillae from adult vibrissa follicles are well established. Far less is known about the influence of adult follicle epidermis on dermal cells, or inductive properties of papilla cells from other follicle types. Cultured papilla cells, unusually, are able to support the proliferation of skin epidermal cells during simple association in culture, but do not produce more elaborate organization or differentiation. However, germinative epidermal cells from the follicle base are morphologically and behaviorally distinct from other epidermal populations, and in simple association with papilla cells interact to form complex structures with a distinct basal lamina. That hair follicle germinative cells have an important influence on dermal cells is further demonstrated by in vivo recombinations, where germinative cells interact with otherwise non-inductive follicle dermal sheath cells to initiate follicle formation and hair growth. In vitro, several follicle cell populations assembled within the capsule of a vibrissa follicle and grown in a three-dimensional culture system produce hair-type fibers. When cultured pelage follicle dermal papilla cells are implanted alone into footpad skin under controlled conditions, new pelage-type follicles and fibers are induced. This emphasizes the power and universal nature of inductive influences from papilla cells, and underlines the dermatologic potential of cell manipulations. The transdifferentiation of the footpad epidermis is a powerful biologic phenomenon normally only seen in embryonic-type association experiments.