Year: 2010
Type: review
Abstract: Skin and its appendages provide a protective barrier against the assaults of the environment. To perform its role, epidermis undergoes an ongoing renewal through a balance of proliferation and differentiation/apoptosis called homeostasis. Keratinocyte stem cells reside in a special microenvironment called niche in basal epidermis, adult hair follicle, and sebaceous glands. While a definite marker has yet to be detected, data raised part in humans and part in the mouse system point to a critical role of stem and its progeny transit amplifying cells in epidermal homeostasis. Stem cells are protected from apoptosis and are long resident in adult epidermis. This renders them more prone to be the origin of skin cancer. In this review, we will outline the main features of adult stem cells in mouse and humans and discuss their fate in relation to differentiation, apoptosis, and cancer.
Source: Journal of Cellular Physiology
DOI: 10.1002/jcp.22275
Authors: Carlo Pincelli, Alessandra Marconi
Institution: University of Modena and Reggio Emilia
Language: English
Topic: Hair Growth and Disorders
Subfield: Dermatology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W1990895777