TLDR Anionic liposome formulations of finasteride may effectively treat hair loss with fewer side effects.
The study investigated the impact of charge carrier lipids on the skin penetration, retention, and hair growth effects of topically applied finasteride-containing liposomes. Using hairless mouse skin, it was found that anionic liposomes resulted in significantly less skin penetration but higher retention of finasteride compared to cationic liposomes and a non-liposomal control. Specifically, anionic liposomes showed a penetration of 12.99 μg/cm² and retention of 79.23 μg/cm² after 24 hours. In hair growth studies with depilated male C57BL/6N mice, anionic liposomes demonstrated moderate efficacy, whereas cationic liposomes did not show efficacy. The study concluded that anionic liposome formulations of finasteride could be a useful topical treatment for androgenetic alopecia, potentially reducing systemic side effects.
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