脱发的原因以未来治疗方向

      [提要] It is not simply a lack of hair, but rather a problem with the new hair that is the cause of male pattern baldness, experts says.　　专家表示他们发现男性秃发的“根本原因”，秃发并不是没有头发而是新头发出了问题。

　   The US team told the Journal of Clinical Investigation the fault lies with the stem cells that make new hair. A manufacturing defect means the hair produced is so small it appears invisible to the naked eye, giving the classic bald spot or receding hairline.

　　该团队告诉《临床分析期刊》，问题出在制造新头发的干细胞上。由于新头发存在缺陷，所以变得极其细小，以至于我们肉眼无法看到，这便形成了头上光秃的区域和后退的发际线。

　　It may be possible to "cure" male baldness by restoring the normal function of these cells, the experts hope. Ultimately, they hope to be able to develop a cream that could be applied to the scalp to help the stem cells grow normal hair.

　  专家们希望通过恢复这些干细胞的功能来“治愈”男性秃发，最好的方式是发明一种药膏，抹在头皮上就能帮助那些干细胞长成正常的头发。

     The University of Pennsylvania team compared hair follicles in bald patches and hairy areas of the scalp. Although bald areas had the same number of hair-making stem cells as normal scalp, there were fewer of a more mature type, called the progenitor cell. This difference means that hair follicles in bald patches shrink rather than disappear and the new hairs made are microscopic compared to normal hair.

　　宾夕法尼亚大学科研人员对比研究了秃发区域的头发毛囊与正常头皮的毛囊。他们发现，虽然秃发区域制造头发的干细胞数量与正常区域的数量是一样的，但前者成熟的祖细胞数量要少一些。这说明秃发区域的头发毛囊缩小而不是消失，这些缩小的头发只能用显微镜才能看到。

　　Dr George Cotsarelis who led the research said: "This implies that there is a problem in the activation of stem cells converting progenitor cells in bald scalp. The fact that there are normal numbers of stem cells in bald scalp gives us hope for reactivating those stem cells."

　　负责这项研究的乔治 考特塞偌里斯博士说：“这暗示着秃发区域的干细胞在转化为祖细胞的过程中出现了问题。在秃发区域有正常数量的干细胞这个事实给了我们重新激活它们的希望。”

     Until now it has been unclear what the exact cause of male pattern baldness is, but experts believe the male hormone testosterone is involved and baldness also tends to run in families.

　 到目前为止，男性秃发的确切原因是什么还没有一个明确的答案，但是专家们相信男性荷尔蒙和家族遗传与之有关。