Concise Review: Mechanisms of Quiescent Hair Follicle Stem Cell Regulation

Abstract

Maintaining a pool of adult stem cells is essential for tissue homeostasis and wound repair. In mammalian tissues, notably hair follicles, blood, and muscle, stem cells acquire quiescence and infrequently divide for self-renewal. Mechanistic understanding of stem cell quiescence is critical for applying these multipotent cells in regenerative medicine and interrogating their roles in human diseases such as cancer. Quiescent and dividing epithelial stem cells located in hair follicle are conspicuously organized in a spatiotemporally specific manner, allowing them to be studied at a considerable depth. Recent advancements in mouse genetics, genomics, and imaging have revealed unprecedented insights into establishment, maintenance, and regulation of quiescent hair follicle stem cells. This concise review summarizes the progress with a focus on mechanisms mediated by signaling pathways and transcription factors and discusses their implications in the understanding of stem cell biology. Stem Cells 2017;35:2323–2330.