Unlocking the Mysteries of Hair Growth

Have you ever wondered why hair grows on some parts of your body, but not others?
New research offers a possible explanation. Scientists found that hairless skin secretes a protein that blocks a signaling pathway (WNT) that controls hair growth.
Called Dickkopf 2 (DKK2), the protein is found in specific embryonic and adult tissues and has a variety of functions, the University of Pennsylvania researchers explained.
They found that plantar skin from mice — similar to the underside of the human wrist — had high levels of DKK2. When they genetically removed DKK2 from the mice, hair began to grow in this normally hairless skin region.
“This is significant because it tells us WNT is still present in hairless regions, it’s just being blocked,” said study co-senior author Sarah Millar, director of the Penn Skin Biology and Diseases Resource-Based Center.
“We know that WNT signaling is critical for the development of hair follicles; blocking it causes hairless skin, and switching it on causes formation of more hair,” Millar said in a Penn news release.
“In this study, we’ve shown the skin in hairless regions naturally produces an inhibitor that stops WNT from doing its job,” she added.
Hair follicles develop before birth. This means that hair follicles don’t regrow after severe burns or deep wounds. The researchers are currently investigating whether secreted WNT inhibitors suppress hair follicle development in such cases.
More than 80 million people in the United States have male- or female-pattern baldness, according to the American Academy of Dermatology. Previous research suggests that DKK2 may be associated with this condition, meaning it could be a potential target for treatment.
“We hope that these lines of investigation will reveal new ways to improve wound healing and hair growth, and we plan to continue to pursue these goals moving forward,” Millar said.
The study was published Nov. 28 in the journal Cell Reports.

Why C-section my not be good for the baby later in life

Caesarean section births may put babies at higher risk for lifelong health problems by altering the amount of “good” bacteria in an infant’s gut, Canadian researchers are reporting.
Appearing this week in Canada’s top medical journal, the finding could explain why babies delivered via C-sections are at increased risk of asthma, obesity, inflammatory bowel disease, cancer, diabetes and other illnesses.
The study is based on sophisticated DNA testing of 24 babies born in Winnipeg. After analyzing the babies’ fecal samples, researchers found that infants born by C-section lacked a specific group of bacteria found in babies delivered vaginally.
Babies that were exclusively formula fed also had significant differences in their gut bacteria compared with breastfed babies.
“The infant gut microbiota plays a crucial role in lifelong health,” the researchers write in the Canadian Medical Association Journal Among other things, bacteria prime a baby’s immune system, providing protection against disease-causing organisms.
“We want parents (and physicians) to realize that their decisions regarding C-section and breastfeeding can impact their infant’s gut microbiome and this can have potentially lifelong effects on the child’s health,” first author Meghan Azad, of the University of Alberta, said in a statement released with the study.
In Canada, nearly 27 per cent of all babies are delivered via C-section. Doctors say most surgical births are performed for medically valid reasons. But there are concerns too many C-sections are being ordered because labour isn’t progressing quickly enough, and that to many “routine” but unnecessary interventions are now being done that increase the odds of a woman needing a surgical delivery.
Babies, like all mammals, “are naturally inoculated as they pass through the birth canal,” researchers from the University of Colorado and New York University School of Medicine write in a related commentary.
Yet C-sections are rising globally. In the U.S., more than 30 per cent of babies are now born by caesarean. In China and Brazil, nearly half of babies are born by C-section.
“The human body harbours trillions of microbes, known collectively as the ‘human microbiome,’ ” the Canadian team writes in the CMAJ.
“Some people call it the forgotten organ, because it protects us from pathogens and also helps in the absorption of nutrients,” said Dr. Anita Kozyrskyj, research chair and associate professor of the University of Alberta.
“Increasingly we’re learning that these good bacteria are quite important to the development of the immune system in the infant,” she said. “They train the immune cells not to overreact.”
The gut microbiome is laid down or developed during the first year of life after birth. “We start off with almost a clean slate,” Kozyrskyj said. “During (vaginal) delivery, babies acquire mum’s microbes from her vagina and her GI (gastrointestinal) tract.”
Using DNA sequencing technology, the team found that C-section babies had undetectable amounts of Bacteroides, an important gut bacteria involved in priming the immune system.

Compared with breastfed babies, formula-fed infants had higher amounts of C. difficile, which has been linked to allergies and asthma later in life.
The study was based on only a small number of babies (the researchers are now testing 200 more infants). It’s also not clear exactly what makes up the “ideal” infant gut microbiome.
However, “There’s certainly lots of evidence to promote breastfeeding and vaginal delivery,” said Kozyrskyj. Much of the focus on the rising number of C-sections has been on the risks to the mother, she said, but not babies.
“This evidence provides information on the harmful effects of caesarean section delivery on the infant.”

Read more: http://www.canada.com/sections+alter+baby+bacteria+affect+newborn+lifelong+health+Canadian+study+shows/7948346/story.html#ixzz2KjLfe9a8

Identical twin moms give birth in Ohio on the same day

Wednesday, January 2, 2013, 6:33 PM
Twin sisters Aimee and Ashlee Nelson had their baby boys at the same Akron, Ohio hospital on Dec. 31. Aiden Dilts and Donavyn Bratten were born two hours apart.

AKRON, Ohio — Aiden and Donavyn didn't wait until New Year's Day to come screaming into the world, but the circumstances of their births are still pretty special: The babies were born about two hours apart to Ohio mothers who are identical twins.

The Akron Beacon Journal (http://bit.ly/YQpn3X ) reports that the 19-year-old mothers — Aimee and Ashlee Nelson weren't raised to do things alike and did not plan the births to come at the same time. In fact, their due dates were about a week apart.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/twin-moms-give-birth-day-article-1.1231814#ixzz2GweG69jz