Transepidermal UV Radiation of Scalp Skin Ex Vivo Induces Hair Follicle Damage That Is Alleviated by Topical Treatment with Caffeine

February 2019 in “ International Journal of Cosmetic Science ”

Jennifer Gherardini, Jeannine Wegner, Jérémy Chéret, Sushmita Ghatak, Janin Lehmann, Majid Alam, Francisco Jiménez, Wolfgang Funk, Markus Böhm, Natalia V. Botchkareva, Chris Ward, Ralf Paus, Marta Bertolini

UV radiation hair follicles caffeine cytotoxicity DNA damage proliferation apoptosis growth factor expression photoprotectant ultraviolet radiation hair roots coffee extract cell toxicity cell death growth factors sun protection

TLDR Caffeine applied to the scalp can protect hair follicles from UV damage.

The study from April 2019 explored the impact of UV radiation on human scalp hair follicles and the protective effects of caffeine. It was found that UV radiation caused significant damage to hair follicles, including cytotoxicity, DNA damage, decreased proliferation, increased apoptosis, and altered growth factor expression, which was more severe at higher doses. Caffeine, when applied topically, did not cause cytotoxicity and was able to protect against UV-induced damage by reducing cytotoxicity, apoptosis, and negative modulation of growth factors. The study suggests that caffeine has the potential to be used as a photoprotectant in sun-protective hair care products. The number of skin samples or donors was not specified in the summary, so the strength of the study based on sample size cannot be determined.

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