Hey, saw this on AOL today - I know it's talking about grey hair but it does mention how WNT is also involved in hair growth. I just feel like it emphasises the fact that the likes of Histogen are definately working on the right stuff. It's also great to know that other researchers are working on this.
Hopefully within the next decade people will no longer have to be bald or grey!
Scientists find a 'cure' for grey hair
By Ceri Roberts, Jun 17, 2011
If you're fed up with dyeing your hair to hide those grey roots, we've got some good news.
Scientists have identified a protein called 'wnt' that's responsible for the production of colour in each of our strands of hair.
In a series of experiments they discovered that this protein is key to hair retaining its colour and it also stimulates hair growth and produces new hair follicles.
As a result, we could look forward to the development of drugs, lotions and shampoos that raise levels of wnt - and restore white or grey hair to its original colour.
And as the same protein is responsible for hair growth, boosting levels of wnt could also help to prevent the thinning that often occurs with age.
Writing in the journal Cell, the researchers from New York University's Lagone Medical Centre explain that the protein wnt kickstarts a chain of reactions that lead to stem cells in the scalp maturing and producing the pigment that gives hair its colour.
They have yet to discover whether it's a fault in this system that causes us to go grey.
Most Britons notice their first grey hair at around the age of 25.
It's thought that genetics determine if and when a person will go grey, but stress, smoking, alcohol, poor diet and even dyeing your hair blonde are all thought to speed up the process.
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