Rajendran RL, Ahn BC, Gangadaran P. Potential of mesenchymal stem cell-derived exosomes in the treatment of androgenetic alopecia. World J Stem Cells 2025; 17(5): 107078 [DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.v17.i5.107078]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Prakash Gangadaran, Research Assistant Professor, Department of Nuclear Medicine, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, No. 680 Gukchaebosang ro, Jung gu, Daegu 41944, South Korea. prakashg@knu.ac.kr
Research Domain of This Article
Cell & Tissue Engineering
Article-Type of This Article
Letter to the Editor
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Ramya Lakshmi Rajendran, Byeong-Cheol Ahn, BK21 FOUR KNU Convergence Educational Program of Biomedical Sciences for Creative Future Talents, Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu 41944, South Korea
Ramya Lakshmi Rajendran, Byeong-Cheol Ahn, Prakash Gangadaran, Department of Nuclear Medicine, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu 41944, South Korea
Ramya Lakshmi Rajendran, Byeong-Cheol Ahn, Prakash Gangadaran, Cardiovascular Research Institute, Kyungpook National University, Daegu 41944, South Korea
Byeong-Cheol Ahn, Department of Nuclear Medicine, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Daegu 41944, South Korea
Co-corresponding authors: Byeong-Cheol Ahn and Prakash Gangadaran.
Author contributions: Rajendran RL, Ahn BC, and Gangadaran P designed the overall concept and outline of the manuscript, contributed to the discussion and design of the manuscript, and contributed to the writing and editing of the manuscript, illustrations, and review of the literature. Ahn BC and Gangadaran P served as co–corresponding authors and contributed equally to the supervision, critical revision, and final approval of the manuscript.
Supported by Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea funded by the Ministry of Education, No. NRF-2022R1I1A1A01068652.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Prakash Gangadaran, Research Assistant Professor, Department of Nuclear Medicine, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, No. 680 Gukchaebosang ro, Jung gu, Daegu 41944, South Korea. prakashg@knu.ac.kr
Received: March 16, 2025 Revised: April 3, 2025 Accepted: May 7, 2025 Published online: May 26, 2025 Processing time: 71 Days and 14.8 Hours
Abstract
Exosomes are derived from various cell types, including mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), and play a crucial role in cellular communication, significantly influencing tissue repair and regeneration and facilitating the healing process. Thus, insights into the functions of exosomes present novel opportunities in regenerative therapy. This article aims to discuss the promising potential of exosomes derived from human adipose-derived MSCs in treating androgenetic alopecia. This study aims to highlight how exosomes derived from human adipose-derived MSCs enhance dermal papilla cell proliferation through the Wnt/β-catenin pathway, counteracting the effects of excessive dihydrotestosterone and offering a novel approach for treating androgenetic alopecia.
Core Tip: Alopecia areata is an autoimmune disorder that promotes hair loss. Fu et al have demonstrated that exosomes derived from human adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells stimulate hair follicle regeneration by activating the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway through cell division cycle protein 42. The study by Fu et al underscores the potential of exosome-based therapies as a promising, cell-free approach for treating androgenetic alopecia, thereby advancing regenerative medicine in hair restoration.
