Prostaglandin D2 Inhibits Hair Growth and Is Elevated in Bald Scalp of Men with Androgenetic Alopecia

March 2012 in “ Science Translational Medicine ”

Luis A. Garza, Ya-Ping Liu, Zaixin Yang, Brinda Alagesan, John A. Lawson, Scott F. Norberg, Dorothy E. Loy, Tailun Zhao, Hanz Blatt, David W. G. Stanton, Lee Carrasco, Gurpreet S. Ahluwalia, Susan M. Fischer, Garret A. FitzGerald, George Cotsarelis

prostaglandin D2 PGD2 androgenetic alopecia AGA PTGDS GPR44 hair growth inhibition immunohistology immunofluorescence keratinocyte cell culture flow cytometry mouse hair-lengthening studies human hair follicle culture androgenic alopecia hair loss hair growth

TLDR PGD2 stops hair growth and is higher in bald men with AGA.

The study found that prostaglandin D2 (PGD2) inhibits hair growth and is elevated in bald scalp of men with androgenetic alopecia (AGA). The researchers identified PTGDS as one of the most highly expressed transcripts in human male balding scalp and found a significant increase in PGD2 in the balding scalp compared to haired scalp. The study suggests that PGD2 is an inhibitor of hair growth in AGA and the PGD2-GPR44 pathway is a potential target for treatment. The study used mouse-back or human-scalp skin to conduct immunohistology and immunofluorescence tests and tested the effect of PGD2 on hair growth using keratinocyte cell culture, flow cytometry, mouse hair-lengthening studies, and human hair follicle culture.

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