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Updated: May 19, 2026
06:51
Isolating Hair Follicle Stem Cells and Epidermal Keratinocytes from Dorsal Mouse Skin
Published on: April 29, 2016
Isolation of Mouse Hair Matrix Keratinocytes for Multi-omics Analysis
Guodong Chen1, Elena Rozhkova2, Andrey A Sharov3
1School of Life Sciences, Central South University, Changsha, China.
Methods in Molecular Biology (Clifton, N.J.)
|May 18, 2026
Summary
This study presents a new method to isolate hair matrix cells from mouse skin using fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS). This technique enables detailed gene expression and epigenetic analysis of these specific skin cells.
Area of Science:
- Cell Biology
- Genomics
- Dermatology
Background:
- Investigating cell-type-specific functions in complex tissues like skin requires precise isolation methods.
- Understanding regulatory mechanisms in heterogeneous tissues is crucial for biological research.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a comprehensive workflow for isolating hair matrix cells from postnatal mouse skin.
- To enable high-resolution gene expression and chromatin profiling of these cells.
Main Methods:
- Enzymatic dissociation of skin to create a single-cell suspension.
- Immunolabeling and fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) for cell enrichment.
- Low-input CUT&Tag assay for mapping epigenetic modifications and transcription factor binding.
Main Results:
- Successful isolation and enrichment of hair matrix cells from mouse skin.
- Compatibility of the method with multiple integrative multi-omics approaches (RNA-seq, ATAC-seq, WGBS, Hi-C).
- Feasibility of analysis with as few as ~100,000 cells per assay.
Conclusions:
- This methodology provides a robust strategy for cell-type resolved analysis of transcriptional and epigenetic landscapes.
- Enables comprehensive study of hair matrix keratinocytes in postnatal skin.
- Facilitates deeper understanding of skin biology and cell-specific functions.
