Abstract
Hair damage is a common problem faced by millions of people around the world and is mainly caused by overuse of heat styling tools, chemical treatments such as hair coloring and perming, and environmental stressors such as UV radiation and pollution [1][2]. Damaged hair becomes brittle, loses its luster, and breaks easily, which significantly affects an individual’s appearance and self-esteem [3]. Hair health is not just an aesthetic issue, but also reflects overall health. Healthy hair is associated with confidence and positive self-image [4]. Existing solutions, such as conditioners and hair masks, often provide only temporary relief and do not address the underlying causes of hair damage [5]. Therefore, there is an urgent need for a more effective and long-lasting solution that can repair and strengthen hair at the molecular level.
Our project aims to design and fabricate a novel protein that can repair damaged hair through synthetic biology techniques. The protein will mimic the structure of natural hair keratin, allowing it to be seamlessly integrated into the hair to repair minor damage caused by physical and chemical stresses [6]. The successful implementation of the project will provide a breakthrough solution for hair damage repair. It will provide a long-term repair mechanism that enhances hair health from within and reduces the need for repeated chemical treatments and heat styling. This innovation is expected to revolutionize the hair care industry by introducing a scientifically advanced product that promotes naturally healthy hair [11].
Background information
At the beginning of our brainstorming, we based on the project team have students often use cosmetics and skin care products and the current cosmetic industry rarely use the status quo of biopharmaceuticals, the first to determine the cosmetics and skin care products as an entry point to start the idea, and then from the skin care talked about hair care, at this time, one of the students explained the problem of their own head oil, so we identified a recombinant protein to repair the quality of hair Project content.
Visual resources
Thin and loose hair Appearance: Lack of strength and thinning of the hair. The reason is that the hair is too few, not thick enough, and the fibers are not elastic enough, thus weak. The advantage is that it is easy to style, the disadvantage is that it is difficult to maintain the style.
Oily hair Appearance: greasy and wet feeling, easy to bond, often sticking to the scalp, combed into a fluffy hairstyle is not easy to maintain, easy to return to its original state. The main reason for this is the excessive secretion of oil in the scalp, which leads to liquefaction and rapid distribution to the hair.
Dry hard hair
Appearance: Common color is dark or red, the keratin fibers of the hair are very strong, not easy to set, very easy to restore the original direction of the hair. Due to low oil secretion from the scalp, the hair lacks luster and is easily blown about.
Deteriorated Hair
Appearance: It is external damage that causes hair to lose luster, become dry and brittle, become unruly, lose elasticity, turn red and yellow and other discoloration, split hair or produce breakage, and reduce the strength of the hair. Most of the causes of hair damage are external factors in daily life such as hair coloring (bleaching, dyeing), perming, combing, hair dryer heat, ultraviolet rays, washing, climate and environmental changes.
Our project inspirations
According to experiments on mice by Lei Xingxing’s team, VEGF165, which binds to the ECM and the cell surface via heparin binding sites [3].VEGF165 presents binding to tyrosine kinase receptors VEGFR-1 and VEGFR-2 either by diffusion or via co-receptors (e.g. hspg). This causes dimerization of the receptors and phosphorylation of tyrosine residues, which triggers the activation of downstream regulatory angiogenic signaling pathways VEGF recombinant proteins significantly increased the number of hairs regrowth, and VEGF inhibitors significantly decreased the number of hair regrowth. This suggests that VEGF signaling regulates dermal cell attachment.
Type XVII collagen is also a key molecule in maintaining the function of hair follicle stem cells (HFSC). According to a related study in Science, DNA damage response leads to the hydrolysis of type XVII collagen, which promotes the differentiation of hair follicle stem cells (HFSC) into epidermal keratinocytes and their detachment from the surface of the skin, leading to the senescence of HFSC, and ultimately to the shrinkage of hair follicles and hair loss. RHCare® QEP recombinant type XVII humanized collagen developed by Dinovation can effectively activate the Wnt/β-catenin pathway for hair growth, promote epithelial differentiation and early development of hair follicles, activate HFSC proliferation and differentiation, and promote hair follicle regeneration.
VEGF stimulates vascular permeability, cell survival, proliferation, migration, or adhesion by binding to VEGF receptors (VEGF R1, VEGF R2, and VEGF R3) and neurocilium proteins, promoting receptor dimerization, autophosphorylation, and activation of multiple downstream cascade signals.
Citing an article by RnDSystems and an article by Prof. Lei Mingxing’s team at the School of Bioengineering, Chongqing University, in the Nature Group journal npj Regenerative Medicine entitled Epidermal-dermal coupled spheroids are important for tissue pattern regeneration in reconstituted skin explant cultures and Dynova Synthetic Biology.
Our solutions
Synthetic biology approach: we will engineer a microorganism to produce keratin-like proteins with high affinity. Through synthetic biology, we can optimize the properties of the proteins to enhance their effectiveness in repairing hair [7].
Protein design and function: the designed proteins will contain specific amino acid sequences that can penetrate the hair epidermis and bind to damaged areas within the hair shaft. This will restore hair strength, elasticity and shine [8].
Delivery mechanism: we will develop an easy-to-use protein formulation, possibly a shampoo, conditioner or leave-in hair care product, to ensure that proteins can be easily incorporated into a daily hair care routine [9].
Sustainability and safety: our project prioritizes sustainability, uses renewable bioresources, and aims to produce biodegradable products. In addition, we will thoroughly test the safety of the proteins to ensure that they do not cause any adverse reactions [10].
References
[1]Lin, T. K., Zhong, L., & Santiago, J. L. (2017). Anti-inflammatory and skin barrier repair effects of topical application of some plant oils. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 19(1), 70.
[2] Clarence R. Robbins.(2011).Chemical and Physical Behavior of Human Hair.doi:10.1007/978-3-642-25611-0.
[3] Itin, Peter H., and Susanna K. Fistarol. “Hair shaft abnormalities–clues to diagnosis and treatment.” Dermatology 211.1 (2005): 63-71.
[4]Stenn K S & Paus R.(2001).Controls of hair follicle cycling..Physiological reviews(1),449-494.
[5]Gavazzoni Dias Maria Fernanda Reis.(2015).Hair cosmetics: an overview..International journal of trichology(1),2-15.
[6] Kan, Jinlan, et al. “Study of mechanisms of recombinant keratin solubilization with enhanced wound healing capability.” Chemistry of Materials 32.7 (2020): 3122-3133.
[7] Alamnie, Getachew, et al. “Production and biochemical characterization of keratinase enzyme from Bacillus subtilis ES5 and its potential application in leather dehairing process: a clean leather tanning process.” Biotechnology & Biotechnological Equipment 37.1 (2023): 2288691.
[8] Abelan, Ursulandréa Sanches, et al. “Potential use of essential oils in cosmetic and dermatological hair products: A review.” Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology 21.4 (2022): 1407-1418.
[9]Gopinathan K Menon.(2002).New insights into skin structure: scratching the surface.Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews(S1),S3-S17.
[10] Ross AB, Maes E, Lee EJ, Homewood I, Marsh JM, Davis SL, Willicut RJ. UV and visible light exposure to hair leads to widespread changes in the hair lipidome. Int J Cosmet Sci. 2022 Dec;44(6):672-684. doi: 10.1111/ics.12810. Epub 2022 Aug 28. PMID: 35924329; PMCID: PMC9804959.
[11] Basit A, Asghar F, Sadaf S, Akhtar MW. Health improvement of human hair and their reshaping using recombinant keratin K31. Biotechnol Rep (Amst). 2018 Oct 24;20:e00288. doi: 10.1016/j.btre.2018.e00288. PMID: 30416979; PMCID: PMC6218806.
[12] Tinoco, A., et al. “Keratin‐based particles for protection and restoration of hair properties.” International journal of cosmetic science 40.4 (2018): 408-419.
[13] Barman, Nirmal Chandra, et al. “Production, partial optimization and characterization of keratinase enzyme by Arthrobacter sp. NFH5 isolated from soil samples.” AMB Express 7.1 (2017): 181.