Post by Lone Wanderer on May 5, 2018 12:01:36 GMT
Sources: www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/05/180503142934.htm
A direct link between MITF, innate immunity, and hair graying
journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.2003648
Gray hair linked to immune system activity and viral infection
Researchers report that loss of hair pigmentation, or gray hair, is associated with activation of the innate immune system in mice
A new study on mice offers insights into why some people's hair may turn gray in response to a serious illness or chronic stress. Researchers have discovered a connection between the genes that contribute to hair color and the genes that notify our bodies of a pathogenic infection.
"This new discovery suggests that genes that control pigment in hair and skin also work to control the innate immune system," said William Pavan, study co-author and chief of the Genetic Disease Research Branch at NIH's National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI). "These results may enhance our understanding of hair graying. More importantly, discovering this connection will help us understand pigmentation diseases with innate immune system involvement like vitiligo." Vitiligo, which causes discolored skin patches, affects between 0.5 percent to 1 percent of all humans.
Why mice that are predisposed for getting gray hair are more susceptible to dysregulated innate immune signaling remains to be answered. The researchers speculate that perhaps this can explain why some people experience premature gray hair early in life, and they will continue their studies to address this question.
A direct link between MITF, innate immunity, and hair graying
journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.2003648
Gray hair linked to immune system activity and viral infection
Researchers report that loss of hair pigmentation, or gray hair, is associated with activation of the innate immune system in mice
A new study on mice offers insights into why some people's hair may turn gray in response to a serious illness or chronic stress. Researchers have discovered a connection between the genes that contribute to hair color and the genes that notify our bodies of a pathogenic infection.
"This new discovery suggests that genes that control pigment in hair and skin also work to control the innate immune system," said William Pavan, study co-author and chief of the Genetic Disease Research Branch at NIH's National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI). "These results may enhance our understanding of hair graying. More importantly, discovering this connection will help us understand pigmentation diseases with innate immune system involvement like vitiligo." Vitiligo, which causes discolored skin patches, affects between 0.5 percent to 1 percent of all humans.
Why mice that are predisposed for getting gray hair are more susceptible to dysregulated innate immune signaling remains to be answered. The researchers speculate that perhaps this can explain why some people experience premature gray hair early in life, and they will continue their studies to address this question.