Possible Involvement of Partial Biotinidase Deficiency in Alopecia Areata

The study investigated the potential link between partial biotinidase deficiency and alopecia areata (AA) by measuring biotinidase activity in 19 patients compared to 19 controls. Initially, patients exhibited significantly lower biotinidase activity (3.0 ± 1.50 mmol/1/min) than controls (4.75 ± 0.80 mmol/1/min). After 40 days of biotin treatment (20 mg/day), patients' biotinidase activity increased (4.40 ± 0.84 mmol/1/min), and 12 out of 19 patients showed clinical remission with new hair growth. The study concluded that evaluating biotinidase activity and biotin supplementation could be beneficial for patients with AA.