Changes in the expression of Hes-1 in the skin annexes (eccrine glands and hair follicles) of leprosy patients could compromise the pluripotential activity of stem cells located in the eccrine glands and in the promontory of the hair follicle (35, 36), considering that Hes-1 is key in the activation of STAT3 (Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 3), which is a transcription factor involved in the maintenance and differentiation processes of stem cells (37). This evidence concerns the gene STAT3 and leprosy.