According to a stem cell research team from Yokohama National University, Japan, an ingredient in McDonald’s “world famous french fries” may be the cure for baldness. The team discovered the chemical dimethylpolysiloxane, a silicone used in McDonald’s fry oil to prevent splashing, can be used to mass produce hair follicles on mice.1
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The study found that using dimethylpolysiloxane proved “widely successful” at creating “hair follicle germs” (HFG)- the cells that help grow hair follicles.1 And once those HGFs were transplanted into the backs of the mice, new black hairs began to grow.
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Professor Junji Fukuda said,
“The key for the mass production of HFGs was a choice of substrate materials for the culture vessel. We used oxygen-permeable dimethylpolysiloxane (PDMS) at the bottom of culture vessel, and it worked very well.
This simple method is very robust and promising. We hope this technique will improve human hair regenerative therapy to treat hair loss such as androgenic alopecia (male pattern baldness). In fact, we have preliminary data that suggests human HFG formation using human keratinocytes and dermal papilla cells.”1
At this time the method has only been used in mice, but the team believes the technique will be able to be successfully used on humans with “similarly impressive results.”
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I don’t know, personally, I don’t mind bald men too much! 🙂 XO- Erin
