Monthly Archives: December 2014

Keratinocyte, Propolis

Propolis from Bees for Hair Growth

12 Comments
Propolis Hair Growth
Bee Propolis for Hair Growth.

Almost every month, new articles come out that promote yet another natural remedy to treat hair loss. Most of the time, there is limited scientific evidence backing the benefits of the said remedy on hair growth.

However, every now and again, a natural remedy with some scientific validity does pop up. The latest is bee propolis (or bee glue), which has a number of health benefits.

You can buy a number of such products on Amazon in lotion, hair masque (image on right) and hair loss shampoo forms.

Propolis and Hair Growth

Scientists (led by Dr. Ken Kobayashi) in Japan have found that using a resinous product made by bees called propolis on mice whose hair had been shaved or waxed resulted in faster hair regrowth in comparison to shaved or waxed mice on whom no such product was applied.

Upon initially reading this summary, I was not that impressed, since all that propolis seems to do is increase the pace of growth of already existing hair. And of course the results have only been shown on mice, a curse of most hair loss research ever conducted.

However, as I read more about this study, I changed my mind regarding its lack of any significant importance. Apparently, propolis contains anti-inflammatory compounds. In fact the study authors seem to suggest that all hair loss has an inflammatory component to it. Perhaps this bodes well for all the recent excitement about new miracle alopecia areata treatment related anti-inflammatory drugs potentially also working for androgenic alopecia? We can definitely hope.

Perhaps of most importance, the scientists also noticed that after the topical application of propolis on the mice “the number of special cells involved in the process of growing hair increased.” Propolis seems to stimulate hair growth by inducing hair keratinocyte proliferation. This is quite extraordinary, and further supports the intelligence of many of our ancestors who used propolis for quite a few medical applications. It seems like this unique ingredient can be purchased at most health food stores and pharmacies.

Several hair products with bee propolis in them have good reviews on Amazon, including Iden Bee Propolis Treatment and Iden Bee Nourished Shampoo & Conditioner Duo Pack.

Update: A new study from Iran in 2016 also finds propolis to have beneficial hair growth properties. Also make sure to read this summary on its various pharmacological benefits.

Alopecia Areata, Angela Christiano, JAK Inhibitors

Alopecia Areata and Dr. Angela Christiano

4 Comments

Despite the main focus of this blog being on androgenetic alopecia (AGA), I have made a number of posts about alopecia areata (AA) during the past year. Note that alopecia areata can be in the form of alopecia totalis or alopecia universalis.

Over 95 percent of hair loss patients suffer from AGA, also known as male pattern baldness and female pattern hair loss.

Alopecia Areata Treatment Breakthroughs

Over the past year, a lot of good news has come out regarding alopecia areata treatments involving JAK inhibitors. This is due to the great work of people such as Dr. Angela Christiano and Dr. Brett King.

Alopecia Areata Hair Loss Photo
Alopecia Areata hair loss patient from Dr. Christiano’s presentation.

In my opinion, there is also a chance that these JAK inhibitor drugs may benefit people with certain types of androgenetic alopecia. In particular, when there is an inflammatory (dandruff, itching, scaling) component involved too. However, this is pure conjecture on my part and entirely unproven.

Dr. Angela Christiano Video

Dr. Angela Christiano recently published a good video on alopecia areata, and it includes her personal experiences with the disease. There is more of a female focus in Dr. Christiano and her Columbia University team’s latest research, which is a rarity in the hair loss world.

This video is embedded below.  A few of the more interesting sections include:

  • 11:00 = I was quite surprised to read that alopecia areata affects 5.3 million people in the US, with a 1.7 percent lifetime risk.
  • 11:42 = comparison with genes involved in psoriosis and vitiligo.
  • 12:15 and 12:45 = most important part of the presentation related to research on Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors. These include Ruxolitinib (JAK 1,2); Tofacitinib (JAK 1,2,3); Baricitinib (JAK 1,2); VX-509 (JAK 1,2); and R348 (JAK 1,2). The last three mentioned are not yet approved, while the first two are FDA approved for certain applications. You can read more about those drugs via the “Categories” section in the left hand column of this blog.
  • 12:57 = Results on mice.
  • 23:47 = Great results on a woman and later on a man.