December 202136
Minoxidil 5% alone was found cost-effective at $50,000, while combining topical and systemic treatments beat any single therapy. Microneedling as an add-on was reported to improve growth with minoxidil, PRP or other treatments. After FUE transplant, silicone gel wound dressing sped early healing versus bacitracin. A meta-analysis found AGA patients showed 3.5 times higher odds of metabolic syndrome. A review linked low vitamin D levels to AGA onset and severity. Ritlecitinib and brepocitinib shifted alopecia areata scalp gene expression toward non-lesional, and maintained benefit after withdrawal and re-treatment in an extension trial.
- Minoxidil, Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP), or Combined Minoxidil and PRP for Androgenetic Alopecia in Men: A Cost-Effectiveness Markov Decision Analysis of Prospective Studies A Markov cost-effectiveness analysis found minoxidil 5% alone is cost-effective at a $50,000 threshold, with minoxidil-plus-PRP worthwhile only at $100,000.
- Efficacy comparison of monotherapies and combination therapies for androgenetic alopecia: A Bayesian networkmeta‐analysis A network meta-analysis of 49 trials found combining topical and systemic treatments with adjunctive therapies beats any single treatment for AGA.
- Comparison of a Novel Silicone Gel Wound Dressing vs Bacitracin After Follicular Unit Extraction Hair Transplantation In a 20-patient split-scalp trial after FUE transplant, silicone gel dressing sped early healing and was preferred over bacitracin, with equal results by day 7.
- Microneedling and Its Use in Hair Loss Disorders: A Systematic Review A systematic review of 22 studies found microneedling improves hair growth as an add-on to minoxidil, PRP or other treatments, with no serious adverse events, though study quality is low.
- Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of the Association Between Metabolic Syndrome and Androgenetic Alopecia A meta-analysis of 19 studies found people with AGA have 3.5 times higher odds of metabolic syndrome, suggesting metabolic screening is warranted.
- Optimization and Transfollicular Delivery of Finasteride-Loaded Proniosomes for Hair Growth Stimulation in C57BL/6Mlac Mice In mice, a finasteride-loaded proniosome formulation stimulated hair follicle growth comparably to 2% minoxidil without skin irritation.
- Prevalence of Low Serum Vitamin D Levels in Patients Presenting With Androgenetic Alopecia: A Review A review of 13 studies links low vitamin D to AGA onset and severity and suggests supplementation or topical vitamin D as a possible treatment approach.
- Development and Validation of a Dermoscopic Severity Score for Female Pattern Hair Loss Researchers developed and validated a dermoscopic severity score for female pattern hair loss that correlated strongly with clinical grading.
- Maintenance, withdrawal, and re-treatment with ritlecitinib and brepocitinib in patients with alopecia areata in a single-blind extension of a phase 2a randomized clinical trial In a phase 2a extension letter, ritlecitinib and brepocitinib maintained benefit in alopecia areata, with data on withdrawal and re-treatment.
- Platelet‐rich plasma in hair loss—Mechanism, preparation, and classification A review of PRP for hair loss concludes evidence remains ambiguous and contradictory, covering mechanism, preparation and classification.
- Ritlecitinib and brepocitinib demonstrate significant improvement in scalp alopecia areata biomarkers In a phase 2a biopsy substudy, ritlecitinib and brepocitinib each shifted alopecia areata scalp gene expression over 100% toward a non-lesional profile by week 24.
- Nailfold capillaroscopy alterations in androgenetic alopecia: A cross-sectional study People with AGA showed more nailfold capillary abnormalities than controls, suggesting microcirculation involvement.
- Feature-Based Molecular Networks Identification of Bioactive Metabolites from Three Plants of the Polynesian Cosmetopoeia Targeting the Dermal Papilla Cells of the Hair Cycle Lab work linked flavonoids and iridoids from three Polynesian plants to dermal papilla cell proliferation, supporting traditional hair care uses.
- In silico screening of effective inhibitor of 5α-reductase type 1 for androgenic alopecia treatment Computer screening identified beta-sitosterol, brassicasterol and campesterol as potential plant-derived 5-alpha-reductase inhibitors.
- Deep Learning-based Trichoscopic Image Analysis and Quantitative Model for Predicting Basic and Specific Classification in Male Androgenetic Alopecia Researchers built a deep learning tool to analyze trichoscopic images and predict AGA classification.
- Photobiomodulation promotes hair regeneration in injured skin by enhancing migration and exosome secretion of dermal papilla cells In mice, 655 nm photobiomodulation enhanced hair regrowth in dermally injured skin by boosting dermal papilla cell migration and exosome secretion via Akt/beta-catenin.
- Association of androgenetic alopecia and severity of coronavirus disease 2019 Among 300 hospitalized COVID-19 patients, severe AGA was associated with worse outcomes in men but not women.
- Hedgehog Signaling in Papillary Fibroblasts Is Essential for Hair Follicle Regeneration during Wound Healing In lab work, Hedgehog signaling in papillary fibroblasts proved essential for new hair follicle formation during wound healing.
- Androgenetic alopecia and COVID‐19: Is there a clinical connection? Among 164 hospitalized COVID-19 patients, AGA severity did not correlate with COVID-19 severity.
- Inhibition of class I HDACs preserves hair follicle inductivity in postnatal dermal cells In mouse dermal cells, blocking class I HDACs preserved hair-follicle-inducing ability in culture by activating Wnt signaling.
- Modulation of Hair Growth Promoting Effect by Natural Products A review catalogues plant-derived compounds that promote hair growth and their proposed mechanisms.
- Polycomb repressive complex 2 in adult hair follicle stem cells is dispensable for hair regeneration In mice, deleting Polycomb repressive complex 2 in hair follicle stem cells did not disrupt quiescence or hair regeneration.
- Preparation and Optimization of Garlic Oil/Apple Cider Vinegar Nanoemulsion Loaded with Minoxidil to Treat Alopecia A lab-made garlic oil and apple cider vinegar nanoemulsion boosted minoxidil skin permeation from 12.7% to 41.6% in ex vivo testing.
- A Hairy Cituation – PADIs in Regeneration and Alopecia A review explores how PADI enzymes and protein citrullination influence hair follicle regeneration and inflammatory alopecia.
- Impaired metabolic effects of metformin in men with early-onset androgenic alopecia Men with early-onset AGA gained less metabolic benefit from metformin than matched controls, possibly due to inflammation and vitamin D differences.
- Metformin Promotes the Hair-Inductive Activity of Three-Dimensional Aggregates of Epidermal and Dermal Cells Self-Assembled in vitro In a mouse cell-aggregate model, metformin boosted hair follicle regeneration by upregulating hair-inductive markers in dermal cells.
- Investigation of plasma thiol/disulfide balance in male patients with androgenetic alopecia Oxidative stress markers were balanced in men with AGA versus controls, though stress and vitamin D deficiency shifted the balance toward oxidation.
- Growth Hormone and the Human Hair Follicle A review maps the little-explored role of growth hormone in human hair follicle biology, noting it inhibits scalp follicle growth ex vivo.
- The Glypican-1/HGF/C-Met and Glypican-1/VEGF/VEGFR2 Ternary Complexes Regulate Hair Follicle Angiogenesis In cell studies, glypican-1 regulated hair follicle microvessel growth driven by keratinocyte-secreted VEGF and HGF, a possible alopecia target.
- Efficacy of QR678 Neo<sup>®</sup> hair growth factor formulation for the treatment of hair loss in Covid‐19‐induced persistent Telogen Effluvium—A prospective, clinical, single‐blind study In 20 women with post-COVID telogen effluvium, eight sessions of QR678 Neo scalp injections reduced shedding and increased hair count.
- Ficus benghalensis as Potential Inhibitor of 5α-Reductase for Hair Growth Promotion: In Vitro, In Silico, and In Vivo Evaluation Ficus benghalensis leaf extract inhibited 5-alpha-reductase II over 70% in vitro and promoted hair growth in rabbits.
- Improving preparation for scalp cooling: Learning from women undergoing chemotherapy for early‐stage breast cancer—The COOL study A mixed-methods study of 49 women found most felt unprepared for scalp cooling discomfort and hair loss, prompting patient information resources and nurse training.
- A study on relationship between androgenetic alopecia and cardiovascular risk using high sensitivity C-reactive protein and galectin-3 in men with early onset baldness. Men with early-onset AGA had similar blood pressure and metabolic markers to controls, though inflammation markers tracked with cardiovascular risk factors.
- Adiponectin negatively regulates pigmentation, Wnt/β-catenin and HGF/c-Met signalling within human scalp hair follicles ex vivo In human scalp follicles ex vivo, adiponectin oligomers downregulated pigmentation and Wnt genes without changing proliferation; blocking adiponectin increased growth and pigment.
- The Role of Serum Th1, Th2, and Th17 Cytokines in Patients with Alopecia Areata: Clinical Implications A review finds serum IL-2, TNF, IL-12, IL-17 and IL-17E track alopecia areata activity, and IL-4, IL-12, IL-13 may predict diphenylcyclopropenone response.
- Deficiency of Formyl Peptide Receptor 2 Retards Hair Regeneration by Modulating the Activation of Hair Follicle Stem Cells and Dermal Papilla Cells in Mice Mice lacking formyl peptide receptor 2 showed excess hair loss, impaired follicle structure, and reduced stem and dermal papilla cell proliferation.