Dermal papilla cells serially cultured with Wnt-10b sustain their hair follicle induction activity after transplantation into nude mice.

Dermal papilla (DP) cells are associated with the development of hair follicles (HFs) and regulation of the hair cycle. However, primary DP cells prepared from cultured HFs are known to lose their ability to induce HF after culturing in standard media, for example, fibroblast growth conditions. We explored a new culture condition by which DP cells maintained their HF induction ability. The addition of Wnt-10b to the first culture of primary DP cells promoted their proliferation and maintained their Wnt responsiveness and HF induction ability. Furthermore, DP cells in Wnt-10b-containing medium sustained those characteristics after 10 passages (100 days), which encompassed the entire experimental period. These results suggest that Wnt-10b plays a pivotal role in proliferation and maintenance of DP cells in vitro.