Why do people grow bald?

There is no effective treatment for people suffering from hair loss. Is it possible to find the cause of this process in order to somehow influence it in the future? Scientists from the Tokyo Medical University found the root of evil. Geneticists managed to establish the exact cause of age-related hair loss. So why do people grow bald?

Experiments on mice ...

Experiments with hair follicles were carried out in mice. During the experiment, the rodents were artificially aged. After reaching the age of eighteen months, they began to lose their hair. Scientists have found that in experimental mice, the hair follicles became less and less. Does this mean that the aging of the body inevitably leads to some changes in the structure of the scalp?

... and in public

To answer this question, scientists investigated a group of people of both sexes in the age category from 55 to 70 years. Surprisingly, but also in humans (both in men and in women), the age of the hair follicles became smaller and smaller. Is a bald patch in an old age inevitable?

Changes in DNA

Stem cells are unique, they have the ability to self-renew and transform into any other type of cells. They are responsible for the growth of hair. Tokyo geneticists have found that with age, people are noted accumulation of DNA damage, which is the cause of collagen protein destruction. In particular, if there is a lack of a gene called COL17A1, then the molecules of the hair cover undergo degenerative changes. In this hair follicles begin to contract and turn into epidermal keratinocytes - cells that make up to 90% of the outer layer of the skin.