The Wound Healing Effect of Nanoclay, Collagen, and Tadalafil in Diabetic Rats: An In Vivo Study

The diabetic wound is the most challenging one to manage, which is associated with microvascular and macrovascular dysfunction, and novel strategies such as using hydrogels demonstrate their promising prospect in treatment and management approaches of the diabetic wound. This study aimed to investigate the effect of collagen/nanoclay/tadalafil hydrogel on wound healing in diabetic rats under HIIT exercise. Hydrogel was synthesized, and then biocompatibility and antibacterial tests were performed. The therapeutic effect of collagen/nanoclay/tadalafil hydrogel was assessed after induction of diabetes in the rat model, and wound healing was evaluated with macroscopic and microscopic tests. The result of the MTT test showed no significant cytotoxicity of collagen/nanoclay/tadalafil hydrogel. Furthermore, the inhibitory effect of hydrogel was detected on E. coli and S. aureus. The macroscopic results demonstrated that the wound contraction was considerable in the hydrogel/HIIT exercise and hydrogel groups compared with the HIIT exercise and control groups during 21 days. The microscopic results showed that the presence of fibroblasts, the amount of collagen, the epidermis density, and the formation of hair follicles were increased in the hydrogel/HIIT exercise group compared with other groups in the diabetic rate model. It can be concluded that collagen/nanoclay/tadalafil hydrogel with HIIT exercise could accelerate diabetic wound healing and can be an appropriate candidate for skin regeneration in medical applications.

Evaluation of Automated Measurement of Hair Density Using Deep Neural Networks

Recently, deep learning has been employed in medical image analysis for several clinical imaging methods, such as X-ray, computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and pathological tissue imaging, and excellent performance has been reported. With the development of these methods, deep learning technologies have rapidly evolved in the healthcare industry related to hair loss. Hair density measurement (HDM) is a process used for detecting the severity of hair loss by counting the number of hairs present in the occipital donor region for transplantation. HDM is a typical object detection and classification problem that could benefit from deep learning. This study analyzed the accuracy of HDM by applying deep learning technology for object detection and reports the feasibility of automating HDM. The dataset for training and evaluation comprised 4492 enlarged hair scalp RGB images obtained from male hair-loss patients and the corresponding annotation data that contained the location information of the hair follicles present in the image and follicle-type information according to the number of hairs. EfficientDet, YOLOv4, and DetectoRS were used as object detection algorithms for performance comparison. The experimental results indicated that YOLOv4 had the best performance, with a mean average precision of 58.67.

Tissue Engineering and Regeneration of the Human Hair Follicle in Androgenetic Alopecia: Literature Review

Androgenetic alopecia (AGA) is an androgen-dependent process and represents the most frequent non-scarring alopecia. Treatments for AGA do not always achieve a satisfactory result for the patient, and sometimes cause side effects that lead to discontinuation of treatment. AGA therapeutics currently includes topical and oral drugs, as well as follicular unit micro-transplantation techniques. Tissue engineering (TE) is postulated as one of the possible future solutions to the problem and aims to develop fully functional hair follicles that maintain their cyclic rhythm in a physiological manner. However, despite its great potential, reconstitution of fully functional hair follicles is still a challenge to overcome and the knowledge gained of the key processes in hair follicle morphogenesis and biology has not yet been translated into effective replacement therapies in clinical practice. To achieve this, it is necessary to research and develop new approaches, techniques and biomaterials. In this review, present and emerging hair follicle bioengineering strategies are evaluated. The current problems of these bioengineering techniques are discussed, as well as the advantages and disadvantages, and the future prospects for the field of TE and successful hair follicle regeneration.

BMP3 Affects Cortical and Trabecular Long Bone Development in Mice

Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) have a major role in tissue development. BMP3 is synthesized in osteocytes and mature osteoblasts and has an antagonistic effect on other BMPs in bone tissue. The main aim of this study was to fully characterize cortical bone and trabecular bone of long bones in both male and female Bmp3−/− mice. To investigate the effect of Bmp3 from birth to maturity, we compared Bmp3−/− mice with wild-type littermates at the following stages of postnatal development: 1 day (P0), 2 weeks (P14), 8 weeks and 16 weeks of age. Bmp3 deletion was confirmed using X-gal staining in P0 animals. Cartilage and bone tissue were examined in P14 animals using Alcian Blue/Alizarin Red staining. Detailed long bone analysis was performed in 8-week-old and 16-week-old animals using micro-CT. The Bmp3 reporter signal was localized in bone tissue, hair follicles, and lungs. Bone mineralization at 2 weeks of age was increased in long bones of Bmp3−/− mice. Bmp3 deletion was shown to affect the skeleton until adulthood, where increased cortical and trabecular bone parameters were found in young and adult mice of both sexes, while delayed mineralization of the epiphyseal growth plate was found in adult Bmp3−/− mice.

Efficacy and Tolerability of Methotrexate in the Treatment of Severe Paediatric Alopecia Areata

<b><i>Introduction:</i></b> Alopecia areata (AA) is a chronic, autoimmune condition affecting hair follicles, and its occurrence in the paediatric population is associated with poorer prognosis and limited treatment options compared to adults. Treatment with oral methotrexate (MTX) has been documented in adults, but there is a paucity of data for its use in the paediatric population. We aimed to study the efficacy and tolerability of MTX in severe paediatric AA. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> We performed a retrospective review on paediatric patients with severe AA who were treated with MTX in our centre from January 2019 to December 2020. <b><i>Results:</i></b> Thirteen patients were included (6 boys and 7 girls) aged between 4 and 16 years at the initiation of MTX (mean age of 8.8 years). The interval from diagnosis of AA to commencement of MTX was between 8 months and 9 years (mean duration of 3.3 years). Oral MTX was administered once weekly with a mean maximal dose of 0.4 mg/kg/dose. Out of 12 assessable patients, 5 were considered treatment success as they had more than 50% regrowth, while the other 7 were treatment failures. No serious side effects were reported. <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> MTX was shown to have variable efficacy for the treatment of paediatric AA with overall good tolerability. MTX can be considered in the treatment of severe refractory AA for children.

Basaloid Follicular Hamartoma of the Eyelid: A Case Report and Literature Review about an Unusual Lesion in the Ocular Region

Basaloid follicular hamartoma (BFH) is a normally benign, uncommon, malformative lesion involving the hair follicles, which usually poses challenges in the differential diagnosis with other benign and malignant tumours, especially basal cell carcinoma, due to significant clinical and morphological overlap. Here, we report the case of a 53-year-old male who presented with a mass in the upper left eyelid evolving for one year. The patient had a previous history of total colectomy and an abdominal desmoid tumour within the context of Familial Adenomatous Polyposis (FAP), with a documented germline mutation in the Adenomatous Polyposis Coli (APC) gene. The eyelid lesion was biopsied and the histological analysis of the three small tissue fragments received revealed fragments with cutaneous–conjunctival lining displaying a subepithelial proliferation of basaloid nests with peripheral palisading, compatible with primitive hair follicles. There were images of anastomosis between different basaloid nests, which had their connection to the epithelial lining preserved. The stroma had high cellularity and sometimes primitive mesenchymal papillae were evident. Pleomorphism was absent, mitotic figures were barely identified, and no necrosis was seen. The basaloid nests did not have epithelial–stromal retraction nor mucin deposits. A diagnosis of BFH was proposed, which was later confirmed after surgical excision of the whole eyelid lesion. No evidence of carcinoma was present. This case illustrates the main features of the rare benign eyelid BFH. The standard medical or surgical approach of these lesions remains to be firmly established. Nearly nine months after surgical excision our patient remains well without signs of disease recurrence.

Expression and distribution of EPHA4 and Ephrin A3 in Aohan fine-wool sheep skin

The objective of this study was to identify the expression and distribution of EPHA4 and Ephrin A3 genes in the development and morphogenesis of hair follicles in fine-wool sheep. The results could lay a theoretical basis for understanding the molecular mechanism that regulates hair follicle development. The skin of Aohan fine-wool sheep at different developmental stages (embryonic day 90, E90d, and 120, E120d, and postnatal day 1, B1d, and 30, B30d) were selected. Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and immunohistochemistry were used to study the levels of mRNA and proteins, respectively. The RT-qPCR results showed that the mRNA expression level of EPHA4 at B1d was significantly lower than at E120d (p<0.01). The expression of Ephrin A3 at E120d was significantly higher than that at E90d and B1d (p<0.01). Immunohistochemical detection results showed that the level and localisation of EPHA4 and Ephrin A3 proteins had spatial and temporal specificity. EPHA4 expression in dermal papilla cells might be important for inducing Aohan fine-hair follicle regeneration and for controlling the properties of the hair. Ephrin A3 might play an important role in the redifferentiation of secondary hair follicles and might also be involved in the inhibition of apoptosis-related gene expression in hair follicles. The Ephrin A3 signalling pathway might accelerate the growth of fine-hair follicles and increase the density of hair follicles.

Formulation of Cinchona Extract (Cinchona succirubra) Cream and The Safety as Hair Fertilizer

Background: cinchona extract contains quinoline alkaloids, has telangiectatic activity, is practically insoluble in water so penetration into hair follicles is low and requires a delivery system, namely cream. Objective: to determine the formula of cinchona extract cream with good activity, physical stability and safety. Methodology: cinchona bark extraction (soxhletation method), phytochemical screening, cinchona extract dosage determination, optimization of cream formula using Design Expert software version 11. Evaluation: pH, adhesion, spreadability, viscosity and cycling test stability. Activity test using guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) for 14 days, parameters of hair length/2 days, hair mass (14th day). Acute dermal irritation test using rabbit (Orycogalus cuniculus) by erythema and edema index parameters. Results: cinchona extract (13.32% yield) contained quinoline alkaloids, cinchona extract dosage was 20% (p<0.05). The optimum formula is F2 with characteristics: pH 6.48±0.07, adhesion 1.16±0.07, spreadability 4.99±0.85 and viscosity 3067±416.45, has good physical stability. Activity test: test area hair length 13.54 – 62.14% longer than normal control and 10.10 – 49.17% than negative control. The hair mass of test area was 122.91% heavier than normal control and 104.48% of negative control (p<0.05). Cinchona extract and excipients were non-irritant. Conclusion: Cinchona extract cream (20%) has hair fertilizer activity, good physical stability and safety.