User:Iduke

Project Overview: find a biological solution to treat/prevent the greying of hair.

Background: wikipedia article on hair color "Change in hair color is caused by the gradual decrease of pigmentation that occurs when melanin ceases to be produced in the hair root, and new hairs grow in without pigment. Two genes appear to be responsible for the process of greying, Bcl2 and Mitf. The stem cells at the base of hair follicles are responsible for producing melanocytes, the cells that produce and store pigment in hair and skin. The death of the melanocyte stem cells causes hair to begin going grey."

Background Resources:

Suppression of Progressive Loss of Coat Color in Microphthalmia-Vitiligo Mutant Mice

Microphthalamia-associated transcription factor: a critical regulator of pigment cell development and survival

Review – Pigment Gene Focus The Color Loci of Mice – A Genetic Century