Olfactory receptor OR2AT4 regulates human hair growth.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 30228264.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-018-05973-0 and PMC identifier 6143528.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Olfactory receptors are expressed by different cell types throughout the body and regulate physiological cell functions beyond olfaction. In particular, the olfactory receptor OR2AT4 has been shown to stimulate keratinocyte proliferation in the skin. Here, we show that the epithelium of human hair follicles, particularly the outer root sheath, expresses OR2AT4, and that specific stimulation of OR2AT4 by a synthetic sandalwood odorant (Sandalore<sup>®</sup>) prolongs human hair growth ex vivo by decreasing apoptosis and increasing production of the anagen-prolonging growth factor IGF-1. In contrast, co-administration of the specific OR2AT4 antagonist Phenirat<sup>®</sup> and silencing of OR2AT4 inhibit hair growth. Together, our study identifies that human hair follicles can engage in olfactory receptor-dependent chemosensation and require OR2AT4-mediated signaling to sustain their growth, suggesting that olfactory receptors may serve as a target in hair loss therapy.
Medical subject headings
- Hair Follicle
- Insulin-Like Growth Factor I
- Receptors, Odorant