Scientists in lab create 'cure' for baldness that could help millions of insecure men

Scientists think baldness might be a thing of the past after they grew hair follicles in Petri dishes.

The brainiacs at Japan 's Yokohama National University used embryonic skin cells from mice to engineer the potential scientific breakthrough.

They controlled the spatial arrangement of two different types of cells, determining how hair follicles grow, reports The Daily Star.

However, the research remains in its early stages, and the procedure still needs to be tested on human cells.

But the team hopes that the lab-grown follicles could be grafted onto a balding person's head, and allow them to grow back lost hair.

The technique could help remedy common medical conditions that lead to hair loss, such as male pattern baldness and alopecia, MailOnline reports.

More than 80 per cent of men experience hair loss throughout the life, with nearly half of women also affected.

It is so common that by 35, two-thirds of men report suffering from hair loss.

Hair follicloids formed through the self-organization of embryonic epithelial and mesenchymal cells generated hair shafts in vitro with a high level of efficiency (AAAS)

It is hoped the study will not only help people get their full head of hair back, but will boost self-esteem and prevent more serious outcomes that hair loss can trigger, including anxiety, depression, and social withdrawal.

Researchers altered the arrangement of epithelial and mesenchymal cells, which can interact with each other to allow hair follicles to develop.

Epithelial cells are a type of cell that covers the surfaces of the body, both inside and out, while Mesenchymal cells are found in bone marrow and are vital for making and repairing skeletal tissues - but have plenty of other potential uses.

Hair shafts appeared 30 days following transplantation and hair regrowth and hair loss were repeated at 3-4-week intervals for at least 10 months (AAAS)

Scientists also added a low concentration of Matrigel, which has been used for more than 40 years in different cell culture applications.

The lab-grown follicles were then implanted into the skin of mice, and went on to generate more follicles, "implicating that [hair follicle germs] have hair neogenesis capability."

After six days of culture, hair shafts were generated. The hairs reached 300 µm long after 23 days of culture (AAAS)

The implanted follicles generated more hair follicles and hair shafts with almost 100% efficiency and grew around 3mm of hair shaft in just 23 days - meaning the treatment, if it works in humans, would be almost foolproof.

The research team now says the next step is to recreate the experiment using human cells - but fear there may be some ethical concerns over harvesting human cells that could stand in their way.