Introduction: Cell therapy is the most advanced treatment of peripheral nerve injury. This study aimed to determine the effects of transplantation of HAIR FOLLICLE stem cells on the regeneration of the sciatic nerve injury in rats. Methods: The bulge region of the rat whisker were isolated and cultured. Morphological and biological features of the cultured bulge cells were observed by light microscopy and immunocytochemistry methods. Percentages of CD34, K15, and nestin cell markers expression were demonstrated by flow cytometry. Rats were randomly divided into 3 groups of injury, epineurium, and epineurium with cells in which rat HAIR Follicular Stem Cells (rHFSCs) were injected into the site of the nerve cut. HFSCs were labeled with Bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU), and double-labeling immunofluorescence was performed to study the survival and differentiation of the grafted cells. After 8 weeks, electrophysiological, histological, and immunocytochemical analysis assessments were performed. Results: Rat HAIR FOLLICLE stem cells are suitable for cell culture, proliferation, and differentiation. The results suggest that transplantation of rat HAIR FOLLICLE stem cells can regenerate sciatic nerve injury,moreover, electrophysiology and histology examinations show that sciatic nerve repair was more effective in the epineurium with cell group than in the other experimental group (P<0. 05). Conclusion: The achieved results propose that HAIR FOLLICLE stem cells improve axonal growth and functional recovery after peripheral nerve injury.

Despite the significant advances in regenerative medicine, wound healing has remaineda challenging clinical problem. Skin is the largest human organ with many vital functions; therefore, any damage to its normal structure should be treated as soon as possible. Easy accessto skin stem cells has created a lot of excitement in therapeutic applications. “ Cell therapy” isconsidered a novel method in regenerative medicine, especially when conventional treatmentsfail. Candidate cell populations for therapeutic applications include embryonic, inducedpluripotent, adult mesenchymal, and HAIR FOLLICLE stem cells. It is possible to differentiate stemcells separated from the bulge area of HAIR FOLLICLE into neurons, melanocytes, keratinocytes, glia and smooth muscle cells that are negative for the keratinocyte marker kr15. This review discusses the plasticity of skin stem cells, especially stem cells located in the HAIRFOLLICLE and their involvement in wound healing, gene expression profile in wound healing, HAIR FOLLICLE stem cells, and their surrounding epidermis. Moreover, the ability of HAIR FOLLICLEstem cells for treating wounds and regenerative medicine is going to be discussed. Eventuallywe suggest the HAIR FOLLICLE as an ideal source of stem cells for cell therapy and regenerativemedicine because they are abundant with easy access and great differentiation ability.

Despite the significant advances in regenerative medicine, wound healing has remained a challenging clinical problem. Skin is the largest human organ with many vital functions,therefore, any damage to its normal structure should be treated as soon as possible. Easy access to skin stem cells has created a lot of excitement in therapeutic applications. “, Cell therapy”,is considered a novel method in regenerative medicine, especially when conventional treatments fail. Candidate cell populations for therapeutic applications include embryonic, induced pluripotent, adult mesenchymal, and HAIR FOLLICLE stem cells. It is possible to differentiate stem cells separated from the bulge area of HAIR FOLLICLE into neurons, melanocytes, keratinocytes, glia and smooth muscle cells that are negative for the keratinocyte marker kr15. This review discusses the plasticity of skin stem cells, especially stem cells located in the HAIR FOLLICLE and their involvement in wound healing, gene expression profile in wound healing, HAIR FOLLICLE stem cells, and their surrounding epidermis. Moreover, the ability of HAIR FOLLICLE stem cells for treating wounds and regenerative medicine is going to be discussed. Eventually we suggest the HAIR FOLLICLE as an ideal source of stem cells for cell therapy and regenerative medicine because they are abundant with easy access and great differentiation ability.