title: Mechanobiology and cell tensegrity: the root of ethnic hair curling?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The hair shape, either straight, crimp, or curly, is basically under genetic influence. It is possibly altered by some drugs such as cytostatic agents. In addition, specific innate molecular characteristics are modulated by some cosmetic procedures to reshape the hair shafts.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To revisit the possible implication of mechanobiology and cell tensegrity in shaping ethnic hair.
  
  
  METHODS
  Optical and scanning electron microscopy of hairs.
  
  
  RESULTS
  It is generally held that the cross-section shape of hair is related to differences in the global aspect of the hair shaft. A possible biologic link between these features may rely on shaping cell tensegrity at any portion of the hair shaft. Cell tensegrity encompasses all intrinsic and extrinsic forces responsible for the three-dimensional arrangement of intracellular macromolecules.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We offer as a hypothesis that the hair shape in part depends on the organization of the cell proliferation in the hair matrix. This review gathers observations supporting the involvement of cell tensegrity in shaping the hair shaft.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Skin Bioingeneering and Imaging, Department of Dermatopathology, University Hospital of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
authors.forename: Claudine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Piérard-Franchimont
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Paquet
authors.forename: Pascale
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Quatresooz
authors.forename: Gérald E
authors.initials: GE
authors.lastname: Piérard
mesh_terms: D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D005006:Ethnicity; D006197:Hair / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D006801:Humans; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning