Blackcurrant Extract with Phytoestrogen Activity Alleviates Hair Loss in Ovariectomized Rats

The study conducted on ovariectomized rats, which serve as a model for menopause, found that blackcurrant extract (BCE) with phytoestrogen activity could potentially alleviate hair loss. BCE was shown to influence gene expression related to estrogen signaling and significantly increased the expression of the hair follicle stem cell marker keratin 19 in human hair follicle dermal papilla cells. In the rat model, a 3% BCE diet over three months resulted in an average increase of 0.5 hairs per follicular unit and a 19% increase in the expression of Ki67, a marker for cell proliferation. BCE also induced the expression of other stem cell markers, including keratin 15 and CD34, in rat hair follicular cells. These findings suggest that BCE may help mitigate hair loss by promoting stem cell characteristics in hair follicles. The study involved groups of 6-7 rats for each treatment condition.