The secret life of the hair follicle

The mammalian hair follicle is a treasure waiting to be discovered by more molecular geneticists. How can a tiny cluster of apparently uniform epithelial cells, adjacent to a tiny cluster of uniform mesenchymal cells, give rise to five or six concentric cylinders, each of which is composed of cells of a distinctive type that synthesize their own distinctive set of proteins? There is now evidence that several growth factors, cell adhesion molecules and other molecules play important roles in the regulation of this minute organ.