April 202447
A review of 5-alpha-reductase inhibitors found approved topical minoxidil and oral finasteride remain preferred over newer agents. Oral minoxidil 5 mg was not superior to topical 5% twice daily overall, though it looked better on the vertex and half developed extra body hair. Adding stromal vascular fraction to PRP gave no significant benefit over PRP alone, so cheaper PRP should come first. Platelet-rich fibrin showed significant effects in five clinical studies, but preparation protocols lack consensus. Necrosulfonamide in mice promoted hair growth and countered DHT-induced growth inhibition. Tofacitinib and baricitinib achieved 53% response in severe alopecia areata with 40% reporting adverse events, none requiring hospitalization. JAK inhibitors were safe and efficacious for moderate-to-severe alopecia areata, though discontinuation often causes relapse.
- Emerging and traditional 5-α reductase inhibitors and androgen receptor antagonists for male androgenetic alopecia A review concludes newer 5-alpha-reductase inhibitors, androgen receptor antagonists and natural products show promise, but approved topical minoxidil and oral finasteride remain preferred until more evidence.
- Oral Minoxidil vs Topical Minoxidil for Male Androgenetic Alopecia In a randomized trial, oral minoxidil 5 mg daily was not superior overall to topical 5% twice daily, though it looked better on the vertex in photos; half of oral users developed extra body hair.
- Evaluation of the effects of adding an adipose tissue‐derived stromal vascular fraction to platelet‐rich plasma injection in the treatment of androgenetic alopecia: A randomized clinical trial In a small randomized trial, adding one stromal vascular fraction injection to PRP gave no significant benefit over PRP alone, so cheaper PRP should come first.
- Real-World Experience of Tofacitinib and Baricitinib Use in Alopecia Areata in Greek Population: A Retrospective Analysis With Focus on Safety In 42 Greek patients on tofacitinib or baricitinib for severe alopecia areata, 53% responded and 40% reported at least one adverse event, none requiring hospitalization.
- Novel investigational drugs for alopecia areata and future perspectives A review finds JAK inhibitors safe and efficacious for moderate-to-severe alopecia areata, noting discontinuation often causes relapse and dermatology cohorts lack the rheumatology black-box risk profile.
- Assessing the Efficacy of Automated Microneedling Monotherapy for Androgenetic Alopecia: A Comparison of 3 Different Depths A study comparing three depths of automated microneedling alone for androgenetic alopecia.
- Necrosulfonamide promotes hair growth and ameliorates DHT-induced hair growth inhibition The MLKL inhibitor necrosulfonamide promoted hair growth and countered DHT-induced growth inhibition via Wnt signaling in mice; MLKL was elevated in balding AGA scalp.
- Efficacy of tofacitinib as an induction agent in severe alopecia areata compared to oral betamethasone weekly pulse A retrospective study found tofacitinib works as an induction agent for severe alopecia areata comparably to weekly oral betamethasone pulse.
- Platelet‐rich fibrin: A review of its role as a new treatment in androgenetic alopecia A review found five clinical studies of platelet-rich fibrin showed significant effects in pattern hair loss, but preparation protocols lack consensus and larger trials are needed.
- Microneedle‐mediated Delivery of Immunomodulators Restores Immune Privilege in Hair Follicles and Reverses Immune‐Mediated Alopecia A microneedle patch delivering Treg-boosting factors restored local immune balance and produced sustained hair regrowth in mouse models of immune-mediated alopecia.
- Discovery of a novel and highly selective JAK3 inhibitor as a potent hair growth promoter A novel highly selective JAK3 inhibitor, MJ04, produced early hair regrowth in AGA mouse models and promoted human hair follicle growth ex vivo with a favorable safety profile.
- Retinoic acid drives hair follicle stem cell activation via Wnt/β‐catenin signalling in androgenetic alopecia In follicle organ culture, mice and a small clinical study, retinoic acid reactivated dormant hair follicle stem cells via Wnt/β-catenin and aided early androgenetic alopecia.
- Lasers in the management of alopecia: a review of established therapies and advances in treatment A review of laser and light-based therapies used alongside minoxidil and finasteride for androgenetic alopecia and alopecia areata.
- Comparison of minoxidil sulfotransferase activity between scalp hair, eyebrows, and eyelashes: Implication for minoxidil efficacy for off‐label use A comparison of minoxidil sulfotransferase activity in scalp hair, eyebrows and eyelashes, with implications for off-label minoxidil use.
- Comparative efficacy and safety of JAK inhibitors in the treatment of moderate-to-severe alopecia areata: a systematic review and network meta-analysis A network meta-analysis of 13 trials ranked deuruxolitinib 12 mg and brepocitinib 30 mg most effective for alopecia areata; deuruxolitinib caused more adverse events, ritlecitinib 50 mg fewer among oral high doses.
- Interleukin-15 is a hair follicle immune privilege guardian Interleukin-15 protected hair follicle immune privilege and promoted hair regrowth in human follicle and xenograft models of alopecia areata, suggesting a therapeutic target.
- Prioritizing susceptibility genes for the prognosis of male-pattern baldness with transcriptome-wide association study A transcriptome-wide analysis identified dozens of putative causal genes for male-pattern baldness and suggested repurposable drug candidates linked to them.
- Modelling Human Hair Follicles—Lessons from Animal Models and Beyond A review covering how hair follicles develop, cycle, and can be bioengineered in vitro for future regeneration strategies.
- Differences in activation of β-catenin in outer root sheath cells between the type of JAK inhibitor: An alternative mechanism promoting hair growth by JAK inhibitors in alopecia areata JAK inhibitors differ in activating β-catenin in outer root sheath cells, suggesting an alternative hair-growth mechanism in alopecia areata.
- Immune niches for hair follicle development and homeostasis A review examining how immune cells act as niches supporting hair follicle development, cycling, and disease.
- Effect of N-acetylcysteine on hair follicle changes in mouse model of cyclophosphamide-induced alopecia: histological and biochemical study In a mouse model of chemotherapy-induced alopecia, N-acetylcysteine preserved hair follicle structure and reversed oxidative stress caused by cyclophosphamide.
- Enhancement of skin rejuvenation and hair growth through novel near-infrared light emitting diode (nNIR) lighting: in vitro and in vivo study A novel near-infrared LED stimulated hair growth and increased follicle counts in cell and mouse experiments, outperforming standard white LEDs.
- Pathogenesis of Alopecia Areata and Vitiligo: Commonalities and Differences A review summarizing shared and differing immune mechanisms of alopecia areata and vitiligo.
- Efficacy of probiotics in hair growth and dandruff control: A systematic review and meta-analysis A meta-analysis found probiotics improved hair thickness but not hair count in clinical studies; stronger effects were seen only in preclinical work.
- Fillers impacting follicles: the emerging complication of filler‐induced alopecia A review of filler-induced hair loss found hyaluronic acid fillers most implicated, with hyaluronidase injections restoring near-normal density within 3-4 months; minoxidil and PRP were minor adjuncts.
- Trichoscopic findings in children and adults with alopecia areata: A comparative study In 124 patients, exclamation mark hairs were more common in children with alopecia areata while yellow dots were more common in adults.
- Epidermal retinol dehydrogenases cyclically regulate stem cell markers and clock genes and influence hair composition In mice, deleting epidermal retinol dehydrogenases disrupted vitamin A signaling cycles, speeding hair-cycle transitions and reducing follicle stem cell markers.
- Construction of a Hair Implantation Needle Using Injection Needles and Assessment of its Efficiency Compared with Other Planting Methods In four transplant patients, a self-made implantation needle achieved the fastest graft planting speed compared with three other implantation methods.
- Elevation of circulating DNAs of disease-associated cytokines in serum cell-free DNA from patients with alopecia areata Circulating DNA levels of CXCL9, CXCL11, IL-15, IFN-γ and JAK2 were elevated in sera of alopecia areata patients versus controls.
- Role of neurogenic inflammation in the pathogenesis of alopecia areata A review describes how nerve-driven (neurogenic) inflammation around hair follicles may drive alopecia areata.
- Using artificial intelligence to compute Severity of Alopecia Tool scores artificial intelligence was used to compute Severity of Alopecia Tool scores.
- Transient stimulation of TRPMLs enhance the functionality of hDPCs and facilitate hair growth in mice Activating TRPML channels promoted hair regeneration in mice by stimulating dermal papilla cells to secrete growth factors and resist oxidative damage.
- The Frontal Fibrosing Alopecia Treatment Dilemma A review surveying existing and novel treatment options for frontal fibrosing alopecia, where evidence is largely retrospective and no firm guidelines exist.
- Low-dose oral minoxidil improves hair length and global hair density in short anagen syndrome Low-dose oral minoxidil improved hair length and global hair density in short anagen syndrome.
- Ganoderma lucidum extract attenuates corticotropin-releasing hormone induced cellular senescence in human hair follicle cells Ganoderma lucidum extract reduced stress-hormone-induced cellular senescence in human hair follicle cells in vitro.
- Minoxidil Nanosuspension-Loaded Dissolved Microneedles for Hair Regrowth Minoxidil nanosuspension-loaded dissolving microneedles improved skin delivery and produced hair regrowth on rat skin within 7 days.
- ASH2L mediates epidermal differentiation and hair follicle morphogenesis via H3K4me3 modification In mice, deleting the epigenetic regulator ASH2L in epidermal progenitors delayed hair follicle formation and depleted epidermal stem cell pools.
- Efficacy and safety of botulinum toxin A in the treatment of female pattern hair loss In 10 women with pattern hair loss, botulinum toxin scalp injections gave mild improvement in only 3 after 3 months, with no adverse effects.
- Trichoscopic Features of Scalp Discoid Lupus Erythematosus versus Lichen Planopilaris: A Systematic Review A systematic review lists trichoscopy signs distinguishing scalp discoid lupus from lichen planopilaris, such as follicular red dots in DLE.
- Effect of minoxidil combined with triamcinolone acetonide on alopecia areata by microneedle injection A retrospective study found microneedle-delivered minoxidil combined with triamcinolone acetonide showed efficacy in alopecia areata.
- Characterization of distinct microbiota associated with androgenetic alopecia patients treated and untreated with platelet‐rich plasma (PRP) In 14 patients, PRP improved hair growth and shifted scalp microbiota, increasing Cutibacterium and decreasing Staphylococcus, suggesting microbiome rebalancing may contribute.
- Evaluating the Cost Burden of Alopecia Areata Treatment: A Comprehensive Review for Dermatologists A review of ten studies found alopecia areata patients incur substantial treatment costs despite limited efficacy of many therapies.
- From Eye Care to Hair Growth: Bimatoprost
- Hydrogel forming microneedles loaded with VEGF and Ritlecitinib/polyhydroxyalkanoates nanoparticles for mini-invasive androgenetic alopecia treatment
- Sebaceous gland atrophy due to seborrheic dermatitis in a patient with alopecia: A potential pitfall
- Comparison between dutasteride and finasteride in hair regrowth and reversal of miniaturization in male and female androgenetic alopecia: a systematic review
- Rosemary and neem: an insight into their combined anti-dandruff and anti-hair loss efficacy