Cancer researchers accidentally discover ‘cure’ for baldness, gray hair

Balding man  FILE PHOTO

A group of scientists from the UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, Texas, were set on discovering how cancer tumors form.

But in the process of doing so, the team found a genetic cure for baldness and hair graying.

According to a report from The Sun, the breakthrough was made possible after multiple cellular experiments with lab mice.

After certain cells were removed, the mice became bald, while deleting a gene in the cells turned its hair white.

“Although this project was started in an effort to understand how certain kinds of tumors form, we ended up learning why hair turns gray and discovering the identity of the cell that directly gives rise to hair,” said Dr. Lu Le, associate professor of dermatology at UT Southwestern Medical Center.

“With this knowledge, we hope in the future to create a topical compound or to safely deliver the necessary gene to hair follicles to correct these cosmetic problems,” he added.

Furthermore, the study revealed that the protein called KROX20—a vital key in nerve development—was primarily responsible for turning skin cells into hair follicles.

The group’s findings were recently published in the Genes and Development journal.  Khristian Ibarrola /ra

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