Effect of skin-graft harvesting on hair growth; implications for the study of alopecia.
An experiment using guinea pigs was performed to demonstrate the feasibility of repeated skin-graft harvesting as a model system in the study of diffuse alopecia. In response to four split-thickness skin harvests from the same site at 2-week intervals, the number of hairs observed and follicular area doubled, implying a transition of hair follicles from vellus to terminal, compared with ungrafted control skin from the alternate side of the same animals. The guinea pig may serve as a future model for the study of diffuse alopecia because its hair growth patterns are similar to those observed in humans.
Li
L
L
Department of Surgery, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas 75235-9132, USA.
Robinson
J B
JB
Rohrich
R J
RJ
D000505:Alopecia / Q000473:pathology*; D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D006168:Guinea Pigs; D006197:Hair / Q000254:growth & development*; D008954:Models, Biological; D016038:Skin Transplantation / Q000473:pathology*