Facing the problem of hair loss: —— New product recombinant type ⅩⅦ collagen is unveiled

As early as 2019, data from China's National Health Commission showed that hair loss is becoming increasingly serious and is showing a trend of younger people. In response to such problems, the "2023 National Scalp Health White Paper" pointed out that consumers' awareness of scalp management is constantly increasing, and their attitude towards scalp care has undergone a fundamental change from attention to action, which will further promote the rapid growth of the scalp and hair care market. 

Yingrun Biotech—— During hair loss, hair follicle stem cells and hair follicle structure undergo significant changes 

Hair follicles are microscopic organs responsible for hair growth. They wrap around the roots of hair, provide nutrients for hair growth, and help hair follicles complete the transitions of different periods. Aging or damaged hair follicles may cause a variety of problems such as alopecia areata, seborrheic alopecia, inflammatory alopecia, and scalp aging.  

Hair follicles are a unique organ that undergoes a continuous and regular growth cycle throughout life, including: growth phase, regression phase, and resting phase. Among them, hair follicle stem cells (HFSC) play an important role in maintaining the hair growth cycle, and hair loss is mainly related to the dysfunction and consumption of HFSC. 

HFSCs are usually dormant, but they are activated in the early growth phase of a new hair growth cycle and rapidly activate division. Under normal circumstances, HFSCs have typical symmetrical and asymmetrical cell divisions to regenerate hair follicles, that is, they divide and differentiate to eventually form hair and another hair follicle stem cell.  

The activity of HFSCs decreases during aging, which reduces the regenerative capacity of hair follicles, and the combined effects of multiple endogenous and exogenous factors further aggravate the aging of HFSCs. Aged HFSCs migrate upward to the epidermis and differentiate into keratinocytes that fall off from the skin, resulting in the gradual miniaturization of hair follicles, which ultimately causes hair thinning and shedding. 

Yingrun Biotech—— Type ⅩⅦ collagen is a key molecule in maintaining HFSC function 

In 2016, a related study from 《Science》proved that DNA damage response can lead to the hydrolysis of type XVII collagen, promote HFSC differentiation into epidermal keratinocytes and fall off from the skin surface, thus inducing HFSC aging, and ultimately leading to hair follicle shrinkage and hair loss. Therefore, there is reason to believe that type XVII collagen plays an important role in maintaining the activity of hair follicle stem cells. 

Type XVII collagen is a multifunctional collagen that not only shows significant anti-aging and repair effects in the field of skin care, but also plays a positive role in preventing hair loss and strengthening hair in scalp care. 

From a structural perspective, type XVII collagen (BP180) is a unique transmembrane collagen with its N-terminus located in the cytoplasm and its C-terminus extending to the extracellular matrix. It helps to form hemidesmosomes to lock the basement membrane and basal cells together, ensuring the integrity and tightness of the skin structure, thereby maintaining the health of the skin. 

Schematic diagram of the molecular organization of hemidesmosomes in the dermal epidermal basement membrane 

The content of type XVII collagen is extremely rare and does not have extracellular secretion, so it is almost impossible to extract it through animals. In practical applications, it is necessary to rely on "recombinant" technology to express this precious collagen.