Several Selective Protein Kinase C Inhibitors Including Procyanidins Promote Hair Growth

The study from 2000 found that certain procyanidins, specifically procyanidin B-2 and procyanidin C-1, which selectively inhibit protein kinase C (PKC), significantly promote the proliferation of murine hair epithelial cells in vitro and induce the anagen phase of hair growth in vivo. Other selective PKC inhibitors, including calphostin C, hexadecylphosphocholine, palmitoyl-DL-carnitine chloride, and polymyxin B sulfate, were also found to stimulate hair growth in vivo. In contrast, nonselective PKC inhibitors like staurosporine and K252a were found to inhibit hair cell growth. Additionally, 1,2-Dioctanoyl-sn-glycerol, a PKC activator, decreased hair cell growth, while forskolin, an adenylate cyclase activator, promoted hair cell growth and enhanced the effect of procyanidin B-2. The results suggest that the hair growth-promoting activity of procyanidins is due to their ability to inhibit PKC.