Changes in hair and skin can be the most obvious and earliest signs of aging. The authors report that skin and hair follicle stem cell (HFSC) aging is driven by stress-induced upregulation of miR-31, which targets Clock to activate MAPK/ERK and deplete HFSCs via transepidermal elimination. Blocking the pathway with MAPK/ERK inhibitors protects against skin aging.
- Yao Yu
- Xia Zhang
- Liang Zhang