Vitamin C (VitC) plays a critical role in the maintenance of a normal mature collagen network in humans (anti-scurvy properties) by preventing the auto-inactivation of lysyl and prolyl hyroxylase, two key enzymes in collagen biosynthesis. In this study two in vitro models were designed to evaluate the effects of VitC on collagen biosynthesis and cross-linking at cellular and tissue levels. It was shown that VitC induced a dose-dependent increase in collagen type I deposits by normal human fibroblasts (NHF) cultured in monolayer, and enhanced extracellular matrix contraction by NHF in a lattice model, in a non-cytotoxic range of concentrations (103m, 104m, 105m).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMinoxidil is the most used drug with proved effects in the treatment of androgenetic alopecia (AGA), but little is known about its pharmacological activity and target cells in hair follicles. As AGA is characterized by follicle atrophy, accelerated hair cycles and hair fiber thinning, we postulated that keratinocyte proliferation/differentiation is affected and we tested Minoxidil's effects on those parameters. Normal human keratinocytes (NHK) of follicular or epidermal origin were cultured in the presence of Minoxidil (0, 0.
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