Scientists have accidentally discovered a potential new treatment for inherited hair loss, the most common cause of hair loss in both men and women around the world.
It all started with research into the “deoxyribose” moiety of deoxyribonucleic acid, a sugar that occurs naturally in the body and helps form DNA.
Scientists at the University of Sheffield and Pakistan’s COMSATS University were studying how these sugars healed wounds in mice when applied topically, and found that the lesions appeared to be less severe than in untreated mice. I noticed that the fur around it was growing faster.
Intrigued, the team decided to investigate further.
The researchers took male mice suffering from testosterone-induced hair loss and removed the fur from their backs. The researchers applied a small amount of deoxyribose sugar gel to exposed skin every day, and within a few weeks, the fur in the area showed “robust” regrowth and began to grow long, thick, individual hairs. .
The deoxyribose gel was so effective that researchers found it was as effective as minoxidil, a topical treatment for hair loss commonly known by the brand name Rogaine.
“Our research shows that the answer to hair loss treatment could be as simple as using the naturally occurring deoxyribose sugar to increase blood supply to hair follicles and promote hair growth. “This suggests something,” says Sheila McNeill, a tissue engineer at the University of Sheffield.
Hereditary alopecia, or androgenic alopecia, is a natural condition caused by genetics, hormone levels, and aging, and symptoms differ in men and women.
Although the disease affects up to 40 percent of the population, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has so far approved only two drugs to treat the disease.
Over-the-counter minoxidil can be effective in slowing hair loss and promoting some regrowth, but it may not be effective for everyone experiencing hair loss.
If minoxidil is ineffective, male patients can turn to finasteride (brand name Propecia), a prescription oral medication that maintains the flow of testosterone in the body. Not yet approved for use in female patients.
Finasteride can slow hair loss in about 80-90% of male patients, but once started, it must be taken continuously. This drug can cause unwanted and sometimes serious side effects such as erectile dysfunction, testicular or breast pain, decreased sex drive, and depression.
“Treatment of male pattern baldness remains difficult,” McNeil and colleagues, led by COMSATS biomaterials researcher Muhammad Anjum, wrote in a published paper.
Together, the research team designed a biodegradable, non-toxic gel made from deoxyribose and applied the treatment to a mouse model of androgenetic alopecia.
Minoxidil was also tested in a hair loss mouse model, with some animals receiving both sugar gel and minoxidil as appropriate countermeasures.
Compared to mice given the gel without any drugs, the mice given the gel containing the deoxyribose sugar started sprouting new hair follicles.
Both minoxidil and sugar gel stimulated hair growth by 80-90% in mice with androgenetic alopecia. However, combining treatments did not make any further difference.
Photos were taken at various stages during the 20-day trial period, and the effects are clear.
Pictures of mice with androgenetic alopecia at different time intervals (untreated mice (NC), mouse model of androgenetic alopecia (T-1), drug-free gel (T-2), deoxyribose sugar (T-3)), minoxidil (T-4), deoxyribose sugar and minoxidil gel (T-5). (Anjum et al., Front. Pharmacol., 2024).
Researchers don’t know why the deoxyribose gel stimulated the growth of longer, thicker hair in the mice, but the team did notice an increase in blood vessels and skin cells around the treated areas.
“The better the blood supply to the hair bulb, the larger the diameter of the hair bulb and the growth of more hair,” the researchers explain.
Photos of hair shafts in different treatment groups. (Anjum et al., Front. Pharmacol., 2024).
If deoxyribose gel proves effective in humans, it could potentially be used to treat alopecia or even stimulate hair, eyelash and eyebrow regrowth after chemotherapy.
“This area is so understudied that new approaches are needed,” the authors argue.
Although the current experiments were conducted only on male mice, further research may show that the use of these natural sugars is also effective in female mice suffering from testosterone-induced hair loss.
“The research we’ve done is at a very early stage,” McNeil acknowledges. “However, the results are promising and further research is needed.”
The study was published in Frontiers in Pharmacology.
