Hair Follicle Epithelial Stem Cells Contribute to Interfollicular Epidermis During Homeostasis

July 2025 in “ JCI Insight ”

Elnaz Ghotbi, Edem Tchegnon, Ze Yu, Tracey Shipman, Zhiguo Chen, Yumeng Zhang, Renée M. McKay, Chao Xing, Chung-Ping Liao, Lu Q. Le

hair follicle epithelial stem cells interfollicular epidermis KROX20 hair follicle stem cell markers lineage tracing epidermal hyperplasia epidermal homeostasis spatial transcriptomics

TLDR Hair follicle stem cells help maintain skin health by moving to and supporting the skin's surface layers.

This study reveals that KROX20 marks a diverse stem cell population in the upper and middle regions of mouse hair follicles, which partially overlaps with known hair follicle stem cell markers. Through lineage tracing in mice, it was shown that Krox20-lineage cells migrate from the hair follicle to the interfollicular epidermis (IFE), contributing to both basal and suprabasal layers during adulthood. The findings are supported by spatial transcriptomics data. Depleting epithelial Krox20-expressing cells results in epidermal hyperplasia and disrupted stratification, emphasizing the role of these cells in maintaining epidermal homeostasis.

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