Wanted, dead and alive; why a multidisciplinary approach is needed to unlock hair treatment potential

Abstract

Human recorded history is littered with attempts to improve the perceived appearance of scalp hair. Throughout history treatments have included both biological and chemical interventions. Hair "quality" or "perceived appearance" is regulated by multiple biological intervention opportunities: adding more hairs by flipping follicles from Telogen to Anagen, or delaying Anagen follicles transiting into Catagen; altering hair "apparent amount" by modulating shaft diameter or shape; or, in principle, altering shaft physical properties changing its synthesis. By far the most common biological intervention strategy today is to increase the number of hairs, but to date this has proven difficult and has yielded minimal benefits. Chemical intervention primarily consists of active material surface deposition to improve shaft shine, fibre‐fibre interactions, and strength. Real, perceptible benefits will best be achieved by combining opportunity areas across the three primary sciences: biology, chemistry, and physics. Shaft biogenesis begins with biology: proliferation in the germinative matrix, then crossing "Auber's Critical Line" and ceasing proliferation to synthesize shaft components. Biogenesis then shifts to oxidative chemistry, where previously synthesized components are organized and cross‐linked into a shaft. We herein term the crossing point from biology to chemistry as "The Orwin Threshold". Historically, hair biology and chemistry have been conducted in different fields, with biological manipulation residing in biomedical communities and hair shaft chemistry and physics within the consumer care industry, with minimal cross‐fertilization. Detailed understanding of hair shaft biogenesis should enable identification of factors necessary for optimum hair shaft production and new intervention opportunities.

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