Reduction of Intrafollicular Apoptosis in Chemotherapy-Induced Alopecia by Topical Calcitriol-Analogs

The study demonstrated that topical application of calcitriol-analogs (1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3, calcipotriol, and KH 1060) significantly reduced keratinocyte apoptosis in anagen hair follicles of C57 BL/6 mice induced by cyclophosphamide, although it did not completely prevent chemotherapy-induced alopecia. The maximal inhibition of apoptosis was observed on day 14 post-depilation. The findings suggested that calcitriol-analogs could modulate chemotherapy-induced apoptosis in hair follicles, providing a potential therapeutic approach to mitigate hair loss in cancer patients. The study involved at least 15 mice per group in 2-3 separate experiments and used a modified TUNEL method for detecting apoptotic cells.