The days of comb-overs, Rogaine, and toupées may finally be behind us. Researchers at UC Irvine have discovered a new, all-natural way to regrow hair.
Professor Maksim Plikus, who led the research, told KNX News that androgenic alopecia – often called male-pattern baldness – is related to testosterone production in the body. Even though the condition affects an estimated 80 million men and women in the U.S., there aren’t many ways to treat it.
“We have a lot of hair on our head. I think the average number that is out there, it’s about half a million,” Plikus said. “So how do you make a half a million hair follicles constantly grow?”
Because the culprit is testosterone, which is necessary for many bodily functions, getting rid of the underlying problem is tricky. Instead, Plikus’ team focused on finding a molecular mechanism that can make hair follicles start growing again.
“If you find those kind of molecules, then you can micro-deliver them into scalp skin only, such as through a fairly painless form of micro-needling,” he explained. “We were looking for inspiration in nature, like other natural conditions where hairs are growing more than they should. And hairy skin moles is just that kind of a case.”
Plikus and his team identified a molecule called osteopontin that plays a role in activating hair growth in moles. By injecting osteopontin into the scalp, doctors could stimulate hair follicles and reverse the course of hair loss.
Plikus says this discovery may offer a road map for an entirely new generation of molecular therapies for people with the most common form of hair loss.
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