Restoration of Hair Growth in Mice with an Alopecia Areata-Like Disease Using Topical Anthralin

January 2004 in “ Experimental Dermatology ”

Lisa Tang, Liping Cao, John P. Sundberg, Harvey Lui, Jerry Shapiro

anthralin alopecia areata cytokines TNF-α TNF-ß

TLDR Topical anthralin helped regrow hair in mice with a condition similar to human alopecia.

In 2004, a study involving 14 C3H/HeJ mice with an alopecia areata-like condition demonstrated that topical anthralin could promote hair regrowth. The mice were treated daily for 10 weeks with 0.2% anthralin on one half of their dorsal skin, while the other half received a vehicle ointment. Hair regrowth was observed in 9 out of the 14 mice on the anthralin-treated sides, with 4 mice showing near-complete hair restoration, whereas no improvement was seen on the vehicle-treated sides. The study also indicated that anthralin treatment might exert its effects by inhibiting the expression of cytokines TNF-α and TNF-ß, suggesting a potential mechanism for its effectiveness in treating alopecia areata in this mouse model.

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