Profiling the response of scalp hair follicles to short-term treatment with hepatocyte growth factor. Profiling the response of scalp hair follicles to short-term treatment with hepatocyte growth factor

Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) is a well-known promoter of cell proliferation, morphogenesis, migration, angiogenesis and pigmentation. To characterize its effects on human scalp dissected hair follicles, we performed gene expression profiling on RNA isolated from entire hair follicles, comparing the effects of 6hr HGF treatment versus control. 183 genes were differentially up-/down-regulated compared to vehicle control. These genes were involved in a number of different biological pathways suggesting that HGF can have various effects upon human hair follicle function. Overall design: Gene expression profiles of whole and dissected human scalp hair follicles were compared between vehicle and HGF-treated hairs for 6hr. Donors included three male patients. Samples were then prepared using the Agilent One-Colour Microarray-Based Gene Expression Analysis Protocol; single-channel Agilent SurePrint G3 Human Gene Expression 8x60k v2 microarrays were utilised with Agilent SureHyb hybridization and SureScan High-Resolution Technology.