Cicatricial Alopecia: What's New in Etiology?

The 2015 document discussed cicatricial alopecia, a rare, irreversible hair loss condition caused by the destruction of hair follicles and their replacement with fibrocartilage. The study, which involved 90 skin samples, suggested that damage to epithelial hair follicle stem cells (eHFSCs) and an abnormal immune response were key factors in the disease's development. It also highlighted the role of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)-y, a gene regulator, in the pathogenesis of cicatricial alopecia. The study found that over 53% of patients with cicatricial alopecia experienced a decrease in sebaceous glands, compared to less than 5% of patients with non-cicatricial alopecia. The research suggested that lipid metabolism disorders in cicatricial alopecia precede inflammation and are caused by an error in the PPAR-y signaling in the hair follicle and sebaceous glands' stem cells. Environmental and genetic factors were also considered triggers for cicatricial alopecia. However, the exact trigger for the destruction of eHFSCs and the onset of cicatricial alopecia remained unknown at the time of the document's publication.