Effect of Citrullus Colocynthis Schrad Fruits on Testosterone-Induced Alopecia

The study from 2011 investigated the effects of Citrullus colocynthis Schrad fruit extract on testosterone-induced alopecia in 15 albino mice. The extract was applied topically and its efficacy was compared with finasteride, a known alopecia treatment. Over 21 days, the extract showed hair growth-promoting activity, with a significant increase in the number of hair follicles in the anagen phase and a comparable performance to finasteride at 2% and 5% solution concentrations. The study concluded that the petroleum ether extract of C. colocynthis, particularly an isolated compound from the extract, could be effective in treating androgen-induced alopecia by potentially blocking the conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and preventing follicular miniaturization. Statistical significance was achieved with p < 0.001 against the control.