title: Role of thymosin beta 4 in hair growth.
abstract: Although thymosin beta 4 (Tβ4) is known to play a role in hair growth, its mechanism of action is unclear. We examined the levels of key genes in a Tβ4 epidermal-specific over-expressing mouse model and Tβ4 global knockout mouse model to explore how Tβ4 affects hair growth. By depilation and histological examination of the skin, we confirmed the effect of Tβ4 on hair growth, the number of hair shafts and hair follicle (HF) structure. The mRNA and protein expression of several genes involved in hair growth were detected by real-time PCR and western blotting, respectively. Changes in the expression of β-catenin and Lef-1, the two key molecules in the Wnt signaling pathway, were similar to the changes observed in Tβ4 expression. We also found that compared to the control mice, the mRNA and protein expression of MMP-2 and VEGF were increased in the Tβ4 over-expressing mice, while the level of E-cadherin (E-cad) remained the same. Further, in the Tβ4 global knockout mice, the mRNA and protein levels of MMP-2 and VEGF decreased dramatically and the level of E-cad was stable. Based on the above results, we believe that Tβ4 may regulate the levels of VEGF and MMP-2 via the Wnt/β-catenin/Lef-1 signaling pathway to influence the growth of blood vessels around HFs and to activate cell migration. Tβ4 may have potential for the treatment of hair growth problems in adults, and its effects should be further confirmed in future studies.
authors.affiliation: National Research Center for Animal Transgenic Biotechnology, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot, 010070, China.
authors.forename: Xiao-Yu
authors.initials: XY
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.affiliation: National Research Center for Animal Transgenic Biotechnology, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot, 010070, China.
authors.forename: Fang
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Hou
authors.affiliation: National Research Center for Animal Transgenic Biotechnology, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot, 010070, China.
authors.forename: Zhi-Peng
authors.initials: ZP
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: National Research Center for Animal Transgenic Biotechnology, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot, 010070, China.
authors.forename: Ming-Tu
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Nuo
authors.affiliation: National Research Center for Animal Transgenic Biotechnology, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot, 010070, China.
authors.forename: Hao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Liang
authors.affiliation: National Research Center for Animal Transgenic Biotechnology, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot, 010070, China.
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cang
authors.affiliation: School of Life Sciences, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot, 010020, China.
authors.forename: Zhi-Gang
authors.initials: ZG
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: National Research Center for Animal Transgenic Biotechnology, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot, 010070, China.
authors.forename: Xin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biomedical Informatics, School of Laboratory Medicine and Life Science, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, 325000, China.
authors.forename: Teng
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Institute of Animal Science, Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Science, Nanjing, 210000, China.
authors.forename: Le-Yan
authors.initials: LY
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.affiliation: National Research Center for Animal Transgenic Biotechnology, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot, 010070, China. xudguo@163.com.
authors.forename: Xu-Dong
authors.initials: XD
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: National Research Center for Animal Transgenic Biotechnology, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot, 010070, China. nmliudongjun@sina.com.
authors.forename: Dong-Jun
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015820:Cadherins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D002465:Cell Movement; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D055786:Gene Knockout Techniques; D006197:Hair / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism*; D018859:Hair Follicle / Q000098:blood supply / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D051821:Lymphoid Enhancer-Binding Factor 1 / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D020778:Matrix Metalloproteinase 2 / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D013947:Thymosin / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D060449:Wnt Signaling Pathway; D000099201:Thymosin beta(4)
chemical_list: D015820:Cadherins; D051821:Lymphoid Enhancer-Binding Factor 1; D020778:Matrix Metalloproteinase 2; D013947:Thymosin; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A; D000099201:Thymosin beta(4); C000611838:Cdh1 protein, mouse; C497574:Lef1 protein, mouse; C000613709:Tmsb4x protein, mouse; C467480:vascular endothelial growth factor A, mouse; C522362:Mmp2 protein, mouse
keywords: Hair follicle; Hair re-growth; Thymosin beta4; Wnt