| First Author | Wei H | Year | 2023 |
| Journal | Cell Stem Cell | Volume | 30 |
| Issue | 7 | Pages | 962-972.e6 |
| PubMed ID | 37419106 | Mgi Jnum | J:338358 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:7511336 | Doi | 10.1016/j.stem.2023.06.003 |
| Citation | Wei H, et al. (2023) Organ function is preserved despite reorganization of niche architecture in the hair follicle. Cell Stem Cell 30(7):962-972.e6 |
| abstractText | The ability of stem cells to build and replenish tissues depends on support from their niche. Although niche architecture varies across organs, its functional importance is unclear. During hair follicle growth, multipotent epithelial progenitors build hair via crosstalk with their remodeling fibroblast niche, the dermal papilla, providing a powerful model to functionally interrogate niche architecture. Through mouse intravital imaging, we show that dermal papilla fibroblasts remodel individually and collectively to form a morphologically polarized, structurally robust niche. Asymmetric TGF-beta signaling precedes morphological niche polarity, and loss of TGF-beta signaling in dermal papilla fibroblasts leads them to progressively lose their stereotypic architecture, instead surrounding the epithelium. The reorganized niche induces the redistribution of multipotent progenitors but nevertheless supports their proliferation and differentiation. However, the differentiated lineages and hairs produced by progenitors are shorter. Overall, our results reveal that niche architecture optimizes organ efficiency but is not absolutely essential for organ function. |
