Topic: Advances in Hair Follicle Biology and Regeneration Emerging Strategies for Aesthetic and Reconstructive Medicine

Hair follicles are complex, self-renewing mini-organs whose development, cycling, pigmentation, and regeneration depend on coordinated interactions among epithelial stem cells, dermal papilla cells, melanocytes, immune cells, nerves, blood vessels, and the surrounding extracellular matrix. Disruption of these processes can lead to hair loss, scarring alopecia, follicular aging, and impaired regeneration, with substantial aesthetic and psychological effects. Recent progress in stem cell biology, developmental signaling, single-cell and spatial analyses, organoid culture, biomaterials, tissue engineering, and regenerative medicine has provided new insight into hair follicle formation and repair while opening new possibilities for clinical treatment. This Special Topic, “Advances in Hair Follicle Biology and Regeneration: Emerging Strategies for Aesthetic and Reconstructive Medicine,” welcomes original research, reviews, perspectives, and translational studies covering hair follicle development and cycling, stem cell regulation, epithelial–mesenchymal interactions, pigmentation, aging, disease mechanisms, follicular neogenesis, hair-bearing skin reconstruction, cell- and gene-based therapies, extracellular vesicles, biomaterials, drug delivery, and emerging treatments for alopecia. The collection aims to connect basic discoveries with practical approaches for hair restoration, wound repair, scar treatment, burn reconstruction, and other applications in aesthetic and reconstructive medicine.

Hair follicle biology; hair follicle regeneration; stem cells; tissue engineering; regenerative medicine.