Date:
October 18, 2026
Source:
Université libre de Bruxelles
Summary:
Scientists have uncovered a surprising difference in how male and female skin repairs and renews itself. By tracking individual skin stem cells in living mice for five months, researchers discovered that female cells work together in a highly coordinated way, while male cells operate more independently. This synchronization, driven by sex hormones, helps explain why wounds heal faster in female mice, especially during the first few days.
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Female mice heal skin wounds faster than males, and scientists have uncovered a surprising biological difference that may help explain why. By watching skin stem cells in living mice for five months, researchers found that female cells work together in a more coordinated way, while male cells tend to behave more independently. These differences are regulated by sex hormones and could eventually help scientists develop more personalized treatments for wound healing and skin diseases.
The discovery comes from researchers at the Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB), working with scientists at the University of Cambridge. Their findings suggest that biological sex influences how skin renews and repairs itself, even though the skin is not part of the reproductive system.
Historically, much of the research into biological differences
Historically, much of the research into biological differences between males and females has focused on reproductive organs. However, sex can also influence other tissues and organs throughout the body. Understanding these differences could be important for improving the prevention and treatment of inflammatory diseases and cancer, yet researchers have often overlooked their significance.
Published in Nature, the study was led by Prof. Cédric Blanpain, MD/PhD, an investigator at the WEL Research Institute, director of the Laboratory of Stem Cells and Cancer, and professor at the Université libre de Bruxelles. The research was conducted in collaboration with Prof. Benjamin Simons and his team at the University of Cambridge, along with scientists from several other institutions.
Using an advanced microscopy technique, the researchers were able to record individual cells through the skin of living mice. This allowed them to follow the same stem cells and their descendants for five months, an unprecedented period of observation. Although their original goal was to understand the mechanisms behind skin renewal, the team unexpectedly discovered striking differences between females and males. Further experiments revealed that sex hormones were responsible.
How Skin Stem Cells Renew the Skin
The skin’s outermost layer is constantly replacing itself
The skin’s outermost layer is constantly replacing itself. This process begins with stem cells located at the bottom of the layer, where they divide to produce new cells. Some of the resulting “daughter” cells retain their ability to function as stem cells, while others begin developing into specialized cells.
These specialized cells form the protective barrier that shields the body from its surroundings. As they mature, they lose the ability to divide (a process called differentiation), gradually move toward the surface, and are eventually shed.
Scientists have debated the precise organization of this renewal process for decades. By repeatedly observing the same areas of skin over five months, the researchers found that stem cells do not immediately become fully mature skin cells.
Instead, they pass through an intermediate stage
Instead, they pass through an intermediate stage in which they can divide only a limited number of times before completing their development into specialized cells. This finding helps clarify a long-standing question about how the skin maintains itself.
Female Skin Cells Work in Surprising Synchronization
One of the most unexpected findings involved the behavior of newly formed cells.
In female mice, two “sister” cells produced by the division of a single parent cell frequently make the same developmental decision at the same time. Both may divide again, or both may begin specializing into mature skin cells.
Their behavior resembles two rowers moving their oars in unison. In male mice, however, sister cells are less closely synchronized and tend to follow more independent patterns.
We initially set out to understand how
“We initially set out to understand how the skin renews itself, and whether there is a hierarchy with stem cells at the top. We were surprised to discover strong differences in the way stem cells renew the skin in females and males,” explains Doctor Dan Engelman, the first author of the study.
Sex Hormones Control How Skin Cells Behave
To determine what caused these differences, the scientists investigated the influence of male and female sex hormones.
They first examined what happened when male mice were castrated, removing the primaryn behaving more like those in females. When the researchers administered dihydrotestosterone (DHT), an active form of testosterone, the cells returned to their typical male pattern
These experiments showed that male sex hormones help
These experiments showed that male sex hormones help regulate how rapidly skin cells mature and move out of the stem cell layer.
The team also investigated the role of female sex hormones. Removing the ovaries (ovariectomy) reduced the rate at which stem cells multiplied and almost completely eliminated the characteristic synchronization between sister cells.
Treatment with estradiol, a form of estrogen, reversed the reduction in stem cell proliferation.
Together, these findings revealed that testosterone, which is generally more abundant in males, influences the speed of skin cell maturation. Estrogens, which are generally more abundant in females, promote stem cell proliferation and help coordinate the behavior of newly produced cells.
The researchers also tested testosterone on human skin
The researchers also tested testosterone on human skin reconstructed in the laboratory. They found that the hormone accelerated stem cell differentiation, suggesting that at least part of the mechanism observed in mice may also operate in humans.
Why Skin Wounds Heal Faster in Female Mice
The differences in stem cell behavior were accompanied by another important finding: female mice recovered more quickly from skin injuries.
When researchers examined wounds on the animals’ backs, they found that wounds closed substantially faster in females, particularly during the first few days after injury.
This early advantage was partly associated with skin
This early advantage was partly associated with skin stem cells becoming active sooner and working in a more coordinated manner. As healing progressed, the difference between males and females gradually became smaller.
The results suggest that the hormonal regulation of stem cells may help explain why skin repair differs between the sexes.
What the Discovery Could Mean for Wound Healing and Skin Cancer
Doctors have long recognized differences between men and women in wound healing, the severity of certain inflammatory conditions, and the frequency of some skin cancers. However, the underlying biological explanations have remained incomplete.
The findings could eventually contribute to medical treatments
The findings could eventually contribute to medical treatments that account for a patient’s sex. Potential applications include improving recovery from burns and surgery, as well as treating chronic wounds in people with diabetes, a problem affecting millions worldwide.
Understanding these differences may also help researchers develop new approaches to preventing skin cancer, one of the most common forms of cancer.
For now, faster wound healing and coordinated stem cell behavior were demonstrated in mice. Additional research will be needed to determine how closely these processes match those in human skin and whether they can be used to improve medical care.
Beyond their potential clinical importance, the findings also
Beyond their potential clinical importance, the findings also provide new insight into the fundamental process of skin renewal, helping address a question that has challenged scientists for decades.
“This study is a technological tour de force, and the discovery of differences between male and female skin stem cells is fascinating and entirely unexpected. It sheds light on a series of clinical observations that previously lacked a biological explanation. It opens up a wide range of new questions, spanning from fundamental stem cell biology to clinical issues such as wound healing, cancer development, and autoimmune diseases. Sex is a parameter too often overlooked in biology and medicine. We will now investigate the differences between males and females during the formation and progression of skin cancers, as well as the molecular mechanisms responsible for these differences,” says Prof. Cédric Blanpain, who led the study.
Research Collaborations and Funding
The project brought together Prof. Blanpain’s team (ULB, Belgium) and Prof. Simons’ group (University of Cambridge, UK), along with research teams led by Michele De Luca (University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italia), Yulia Shwartz (Broad CIRM Center, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, US) and Esther Hoste (VIB-Ghent University, Belgium).
Funding was provided by the FNRS (including FRIA
Funding was provided by the FNRS (including FRIA fellowships), TELEVIE, the WEL Research Institute, the Fondation contre le Cancer, the Fondation ULB, the Fonds Erasme, the Fondation Julie et Françoise Drion, the Fonds Yvonne Boël, the joint FNRS/FWO EOS (Excellence of Science) program and the European Research Council (ERC).
Materials provided by Université libre de Bruxelles. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
- Lucila Peralta Gavensky, Gonzalo Usaj, Nathan Goldman. Středa Formula for Floquet Systems: Topological Invariants and Quantized Anomalies from Cesàro Summation. Physical Review X, 2025; 15 (3) DOI: 10.1103/b3pw-my97
Université libre de Bruxelles. “Scientists discover that male and female skin play by different rules.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 18 October 2026. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/10/261017230020.htm>.
Université libre de Bruxelles. (2026, October 18). Scientists discover that male and female skin play by different rules. ScienceDaily. Retrieved October 18, 2026 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/10/261017230020.htm
Université libre de Bruxelles. “Scientists discover that male and female skin play by different rules.” ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/10/261017230020.htm (accessed October 18, 2026).
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