Premium
Nail stem cells
Author(s) -
Sellheyer Klaus
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
jddg: journal der deutschen dermatologischen gesellschaft
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.463
H-Index - 60
eISSN - 1610-0387
pISSN - 1610-0379
DOI - 10.1111/ddg.12030
Subject(s) - stem cell , hair follicle , nail (fastener) , biology , microbiology and biotechnology , materials science , metallurgy
Summary Our knowledge on stem cells of the hair follicle has increased exponentially after the bulge was characterized as the stem cell niche two decades ago. In contrast, little is known about stem cells in the nail unit. Whereas hair follicles are plentiful and easy to access, the human body has only twenty nails and they are rarely biopsied. Therefore, examining fetal material offers unique advantages. In the following mini‐review, our current knowledge on nail stem cells is summarized and analogies to the hair follicle stem cells are drawn.