# Synthetic Developmental Tissue Engineering of Human Hair Follicles

> **NIH NIH K01** · COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES · 2020 · $115,569

## Abstract

Project Summary
Human skin equivalents (HSEs) have provided an effective therapy for patients with significant skin loss due to
burns, ulcers and genetic skin diseases; however they still have various limitations including poor viability and
lack of appendages or mismatch in hair density. We have recently improved the viability of skin grafts by
establishing a method to micropattern vasculature in HSEs. On the other hand, it still remains a prevailing
challenge to engineer functional skin grafts with hair follicles since long-term cultured human dermal papilla
cells (DPCs) in vitro lose their hair-inducing capacity. The overall goal of this project is to engineer viable and
functional skin equivalents with appendages using cultured human cells. We will employ bioengineering,
genetics and systems biology approaches to reprogram cultured DPCs and dermal fibroblasts into hair
inductive cells. These cells will then be used to generate hair-bearing 3D skin equivalents, enabling the
development of truly functional skin substitutes for patients with significant skin/hair loss. In particular, we will
use i) microfabrication techniques to recapitulate 3D hair follicle microenvironment (microenvironmental
approach) and ii) reverse engineering gene network analysis to reprogram hair inductive gene signatures of
cultured DPCs and fibroblasts (genetic approach). Finally, taking advantage of our recently established
technique for vascularization, we will develop viable HSEs that, after engraftment, can controllably regenerate
hair and remain fully integrated due to enhanced revascularization. The ability to regenerate an entire hair
follicle from cultured human cells will have an overwhelming positive impact on the medical management of
different types of alopecia, epidermolysis bullosa as well as chronic wounds, severe infections, and burns, all
of which represent major unmet medical needs. The ability to generate a hair-bearing skin is a crucial step
towards making a truly functional human skin and would mark a dramatic conceptual advance in regenerative
medicine approaches to disorders of the skin and hair follicle, such as hair loss, as well as improve the
outcome of severe skin injuries leading to disfiguring scars.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9980331
- **Project number:** 5K01AR072131-04
- **Recipient organization:** COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES
- **Principal Investigator:** Hasan Erbil Abaci
- **Activity code:** K01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $115,569
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-09-12 → 2022-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9980331

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9980331, Synthetic Developmental Tissue Engineering of Human Hair Follicles (5K01AR072131-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9980331. Licensed CC0.

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