ATAC-seq data of hair follicle stem cells. Mus musculus

Environmental factors in addition to genetic background contribute to organ aging. Obesity, a worldwide epidemic, underlie many aging-associated diseases, yet its impact on epithelial organ ageing are largely unknown. Hair follicle, a mini epithelial organ that grow hair, miniaturizes by ageing, but how environmental factors are involved in the process is largely unknown. We report that high-fat diet (HFD)-induced or genetically induced obesity directly target hair follicle stem cells (HFSCs) to drastically deplete HFSCs through their epidermal differentiation thereby causing hair loss. Chromatin accessibility was analyzed by ATAC seq in order to identify transcription factor(s) or pathways responsible for HFD-induced hair loss.