Update: September 8, 2025
IGF-1 Mimetic for Hair Regrowth
A new August 2025 study from China in relation to insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) and hair growth is making some waves in the hair loss world. The authors synthesized a biomimetic peptide of IGF-1 (called Ac-GFFY-IGF) that structurally and functionally mimicked IGF-1. Also of note, another recent Chinese study from July 2025 covered targeting IGF-1 induced cellular senescence in order to rejuvenate hair follicle aging.
In mouse models, it ended up:
- Promoting the proliferation of dermal papilla cells.
- Resisting dihydrotestosterone (DHT)-induced hair follicle apoptosis.
- Facilitating the transition of hair follicles from telogen (resting) to anagen (growing) phase.
- Promoting hair regrowth more effectively than minoxidil and native IGF-1 in androgenetic alopecia mouse models.
A Spain based dermatologist has covered this development in a detailed video:
March 30, 2015
IGF-1 and Hair Growth
In late 2014, I wrote about Shiseido’s Adenovital product made with Adenosine. The solid science behind this product, its popularity in Asia, and the good reputation of Shiseido all convinced me to add this product to the very short list of recommended hair loss products page on this site.
One of the studies in that blog post suggested that Adenosine promotes the expression of several growth factors responsible for hair growth, including fibroblast growth factors FGF-7 and FGF-2, insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF).
I was planning to focus more on writing about these growth factors in 2015, and lo and behold I got my first chance several weeks ago when a new company called Follicept announced that it had developed a gel product that would deliver IGF-1 to the scalp and in the process bolster hair growth.
I was highly skeptical about this company at the time and remain so. Even after the Bald Truth Talk forum thread on this subject took off. It has some interesting posts from one of the company’s reps under the username “Follicept” whose real name is “Devon”.
Update: September 21, 2015 — In very sad news, Devon passed away at the very young age of 27.
For one, I am generally not a believer in new companies that are suddenly promoted enthusiastically in newspapers such as businesswire and are looking for funding. Moreover, this company had not even started testing on humans at the time of the initial publicity, although they were planning to do so very soon thereafter.
Also, while Follicept has some excellent material related to IGF-1 on their website, I was also not impressed by the grammar and appearance of parts of their site. But perhaps I am being too picky here and should just be glad that there are more companies working on baldness treatments.
In any case, Follicept does have some things going for it. For one, the company is connected to The University of Florida and Prometheon Pharma. The company’s CEO seems very intelligent and accomplished. The Follicept product is also going to be very low-cost (comparable to the price of Rogaine).
Most importantly, it seems like the company will not have to go through lengthy clinical trials, since IGF-1 has been used in humans for a while. In fact their are numerous studies supporting IGF-1’s beneficial properties when it comes to hair growth. So the product will quite likely be released by the end of this year as planned by the company assuming they get the funding they need. If effective, Follicept will also work for women.
One concern is that Shiseido’s Adenovital, while a very good product, never resulted in any kind of miracle result despite promoting the IGF-1 growth factor. Will Follicept be any better due to a possibly superior delivery mechanism? Can a new company that is still looking for funding produce something superior to a major established player such as Shiseido? I am not a believer, but it seems like quite a few people on the forums and on the chat on this site have an opposing viewpoint.
It’s crazy when you read down this thread and someone asked when will Breezula be released. That was in 2015. 10 years on and still nothing.
I am optimistic that between KX-826 and Breezula, at least one will be released (in a non-cosmetic version) by the end of 2026. But neither is even remotely a cure.
Hi thank you for sharing your view on Breezula and KX-826. What’s your hunch/personal opinion on hair cloning/stem cell therapy/hair regeneration commercialization? Like what year is it likely to become commercially available?
Unfortunately, I thought that by the end of 2020, something big would have been released. Especially after Dr. Tsuji made a similar prediction. I also had high hopes that at least a couple of Follica, Histogen, Samumed, Shiseido, Fukuda, Kythera, Aclaris etc… would have released something. Only Shiseido came through, but it is not a major breakthrough.
I no longer trust my forecasting!!
Still, could you please share your opinion? Or anyone else who wants to share? Like what’s the more pessimistic estimate?
Same here (I use the KX cosmetic now), it’s just crazy that 10 years have passed. I have been following Breezula since before then. P3 results due soon!
What happened with Follicept and Prometheon after Devon passed away? Did Prometheon stop the project or are they still working on it? Follicept was one of my first hopes. Crazy that was 10 years ago.
How long till we see this peptide from a Chinese lab??
Hi, social media put this article in my face – it claims that a Spanish company developed a plant based ingredient that stimulates IGF1. Edit: Link no longer works.
I took a look at the companies sites – Vyturs is developing and patenting a lot of plant derived ingredients for cosmetic use and Scandinavian Biolabs is actually selling the hair serum. It has a long list of good sounding ingredients but reading the customer reviews makes it look like a scam.
The main ingredient is derived from curcuma which gets a lot of hype for various health claims.
So, I’m not sure if there is any real science and real results in this.
Cure inflammation with diet/nutrition.
Reduce DHT by abstaining from fapping & sex for a couple of weeks and taking some Saw Palmetto or something.
Increase blood flow with cold water & Infra red lamps.
De-calcify hair follicles – god knows how, probably a lot of Vit K.
Then smash some of this stuff on and it will probably work.
By far this is the best place to get updates about baldness cutting edge hair loss treatments. Thank you so much admin for being there. Thanks for being straightforward and unbiased.
To be honest i was waiting for you to post about this Admin
Thank you!!
Anyone know when cb 03-01 (Breezula) will be available in the market?
Probably in 2019. They’re finishing Phase II trials in November 2015.
Phase III three years? Why so long? It’s a POC. They have approved CB 03-01 to treat acne! Maybe the product will be available in early 2018.
I too have my doubts about a startup company’s ability to deliver what they promise, mainly due to my experience with Theradome. But hopefully Follicept is somewhat more effective and pushes Shiseido and other big players to speed up their trials. And even if Follicept turns out to be only slightly better than Fin and Minox without those nasty side effects, I’ll be satisfied.