Monthly Archives: February 2016

American Academy of Dermatology, Samumed, SM04554

74th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Dermatology

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The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) will hold its 74th Annual Meeting between March 4 and March 8 in Washington DC. The schedule has around a dozen presentations involving scalp hair, although most seem pretty generic.

Not surprisingly, on the hair forums, only one presentation is garnering any kind of discussion: Samumed’s 12 minute summary of phase II clinical trial results of its SM04554 topical hair loss product.

It should be noted that Samumed already presented some favorable findings about its phase II trials towards the end of last year.  See my summary of that news here.  I am not expecting anything particularly impressive in this latest presentation, but would be more than happy to be wrong

You can follow the AAD on Twittter here.  Samumed will probably add its presentation summary on its media page after the conference is over.

FYI: Several people e-mailed me about this conference and posted comments about it in the last blog post.  Thanks to those people, but please try to only e-mail me news that you know is not covered widely on the hair loss forums.  I check those forums almost every day!  If you have a unique take on something, feel free to e-mail me.

3D Bioprinter, Almirall, Anthony Atala, COL17A1, Replicel, Senescent Cells, Takashi Tsuji, Wake Forest University

Biotechs Target Baldness Market

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Biotechs Target Baldness Market

— The latest issue of Nature Biology has an interesting article titled “Biotechs target stagnant baldness market.” My favorite and at the same time least favorite sentence from the article:  “It’s been 25 years since Propecia (finasteride), from Merck of Kenilworth, New Jersey, was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1992.”

— Thanks to commentator “nosyu” from Japan for posting a link with news from today regarding hair and skin focused Japanese company Adjuvant Cosmetics. It is partnering with Dr. Takashi Tsuji (RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology) and Organ Technologies to conduct joint research on product development for hair and scalp problems.

— Of all the researchers and companies involved in the hair loss world, Replicel has provided us with the most regular updates. This past month has been no exception. Here is a new video with Replicel’s CEO Lee Buckler starting his presentation at 16:11. The presentation was part of the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO)’s “Investing in Japan” conference in Toronto, Canada that took place on January 29th 2016. The focus of the conference was on Japan’s booming regenerative medicine market. Lee also discusses Replicel’s partner Shiseido.

— Study from Japan suggests that COL17A1 (collagen gene) could be a new target for therapy in preventing hair loss.

— Kerastem clinical trial page was updated at the end of January 2016. Go under the locations section of that page to see if there is a clinic near you where you can volunteer. US only for now it seems.

— Excellent new article summarizing latest hair loss treatment options. One of the co-authors is the famous Dr. Antonella Tosti.

— Polichem (which is working on a topical Finasteride product called P-3074) was purchased by Spain’s Almirall. Also see this new positive study from Italy on P-3074.

— Irish men are increasingly opting for hair transplants like Wayne Rooney. Is a reduction in alcohol consumption next?

And now on to medical items of interest:

— Partisanship in the US hurting 21st Century Cures Act. Thank goodness for Japan, Canada, UK and probably some other countries by now.

— I have discussed Dr. Anthony Atala and the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine several times on this blog before. This week, both were widely covered by the media due to the completion of their 3D bioprinter that can make bone, cartilage and muscle (a culmination of 10 years of work it seems). Full journal article here. No mention about hair in there, but a Canadian team’s 3D bioprinter related article from 2014 mentions the eventual feasibility of adding hair follicles to the new skin. Some quotes from Dr. Atala here.

— UK scientists get gene editing go ahead. Now western scientists may become less prone to criticize the Chinese too much like they did last year.

— Oldest heart transplant recipient dies 33 years after getting a new heart. Amazing story. In another article I read, his son said that he died from kidney problems and still had no heart problems.

— If you have older family members that you want to live longer, you might want to find a sketchy doctor who can help remove their senescent worn out cells without government approval.

— A major boost for cryonics.

— A major boost for cancer treatment (using immune cells).