SOX18 Promotes the Proliferation of Dermal Papilla Cells via the Wnt/β-Catenin Signaling Pathway.

SRY-box transcription factor 18 () is known to play a crucial role in the growth and development of hair follicles (HF) in both humans and mice. However, the specific effect of on sheep hair follicles remains largely unknown. In our previous study, we observed that was specifically expressed within dermal papilla cells (DPCs) in ovine hair follicles, leading us to investigate its potential role in the growth of hair follicles in sheep. In the present study, we aimed to examine the effect of in DPCs and preliminarily study its regulatory mechanism through RNA-seq. We initially found that the overexpression of promoted the proliferation of DPCs compared to the negative control group, while the interference of had the opposite effect. To gain further insight into the regulatory mechanism of , we conducted RNA-seq analysis after knocking down in Hu sheep DPCs. The result showed that the Wnt/β-Catenin signaling pathway was involved in the growth process of DPC after knockdown. Subsequently, we investigated the effect of on the Wnt/β-Catenin signaling pathway in DPCs using TOP/FOP-flash, qRT-PCR, and Western blot (WB) analysis. Our data demonstrated that could activate the Wnt/β-Catenin signaling pathway in DPCs. Additionally, we observed that could rescue the proliferation of DPCs after inhibiting the Wnt/β-Catenin signaling pathway. These findings underscore the essential role of as a functional molecule governing the proliferation of DPCs. Additionally, these findings also greatly enhance our understanding of the role of in the proliferation of DPCs and the growth of wool in Hu sheep.