Update: January 4, 2026
Absci is publishing numerous new videos on its YouTube channel. All of them are very encouraging so far.
Also check out the company’s detailed presentation on ABS-201 from the end of 2025.
Absci (US) is an artificial intelligence (AI) drug and biologic creation company that is developing novel treatments via the use generative AI. One of the key products that they are focusing on is a prolactin receptor (PRLR) targeting injection based hair growth treatment called ABS-201. Phase 1 clinical trials for this product began in Australia at Sinclair Dermatology in December 2025. Note that Hope Medicine (China)’s Phase 1 clinical trials for its prolactin receptor blocking HMI-115 injections also occurred at Sinclair Dermatology in 2022. Hope Medicine later completed Phase 2 trials in China in 2025. The top half of this post is all new updates.
Update: December 11, 2025
ABS-201 Regenerates Hair Stem Cells and Promotes Key Growth Modulators
Absci today unveiled new preclinical data for ABS-201. The data was generated using translational human ex vivo scalp models. It demonstrated that ABS-201 stimulates hair growth by regenerating the stem cell niche as well as by promoting additional key growth modulators. The studies were led by Dr. Ralf Paus, who says:
“Our study provides the first evidence that antagonizing prolactin signaling with ABS-201 could open a radically new chapter in future AGA management.”
Among the key findings:
- ABS-201 significantly inhibits the PRLR signaling pathway.
- ABS-201 prolongs the anagen phase by blocking catagen, and promoting hair matrix keratinocyte proliferation.
- In addition, it increases the production of the hair growth-stimulatory growth factors IGF1 and FGF7.
- ABS-201 protects and expands the hair follicle progenitor cell pool. It inhibits prolactin-induced apoptosis of K15+ stem cells , and increases their proliferation and capacity to generate CD34+ progeny. This is crucial, since the depletion of progenitor cells is a key hallmark of androgenetic alopecia.
- It facilitates the reconversion of vellus hairs to terminal hairs.
Also of interest, long-time hair loss sufferer and former US soccer superstar Landon Donovan has teamed up with Absci. Way out of leftfield.
Update: December 4, 2025
Absci just announced that the first volunteers have been dosed in their Phase 1/2a HEADLINE study evaluating ABS-201. Absci will host a virtual KOL seminar on Thursday December 11 to discuss further details about this drug and its clinical trials.
Also check out this great detailed interview of Absci founder and CEO Sean McClain with ARK Invest’s legendary Cathie Wood.
Update: October 20, 2025
Absci to Begin Phase 1 Clinical Trials for ABS-201 in December 2025
In a new article about Absci’s ABS-201 hair growth injections that target the prolactin receptor, it is mentioned that Phase 1 clinical trials will begin in Australia in December 2025. The renowned Dr. Rodney Sinclair will oversee the trials at his Sinclair Dermatology clinic. Interestingly, Hope Medicine’s Phase 1 clinical trials for its prolactin receptor blocking HMI-115 injections also occurred in Australia at Sinclair Dermatology in 2022.
Of note, the Absci research team believes that ABS-201 could also cure premature greying by re-pigmenting the hair. This is based on their pre-clincial work on macaques, in which the animals’ hair reverted back from grey to black.
Key quote regarding Absci’s use of AI to develop this product:
“Using AI to develop the needle itself (in this case, the perfect antibody sequence) researchers were able to discover key antibody binding regions that could precisely target the prolactin receptor, thus ceasing hair loss. Using computer simulations, Absci was able to optimize certain drug qualities, including increased potency and decreased likelihood of negative immune response.”
Update: July 2025
The CEO of Absci posted the below Tweet recently. The before and after macaque monkey image in there seems identical to the image from Hope Medicine’s HMI-115 and its effect on macaques. Strange. The same image can also be seen in their 2024 R&D document. Both HMI-115 and Absci’s ABS-201 target the prolactin receptor to regrow hair. Hope Medicine has already completed Phase 2 clinical trials, while Absci is yet to commence any human trials.
April 6, 2025
Absci is a data-first artificial intelligence drug and biologic creation company that is unlocking novel treatments through the use generative AI. Most interestingly, one of the key products that they are focusing on is a hair growth treatment called ABS-201 that targets the prolactin receptor.
I first heard about the company in January 2025 when Absci received a $20 million investment from chip manufacturer Advanced Micro Devices (AMD). Unlike virtually all new entrants in the hair loss world, Absci has a great website. However, it should be noted that the company originally started operations way back in 2011, under the auspices of founder and CEO Sean McClain.
In March 2025, Absci presented on the subject of AI in dermatology at the Dermatology Innovation Forum. On a related note, in 2022, I wrote a post on AI and machine learning for hair loss drug discovery.
Absci Presentation on ABS-201
Considering that Absci’s pipeline page shows that ABS-201 is yet to even enter Phase 1 clinical trials, I was reluctant to write this post. However a new video presentation (embedded below) that the company uploaded in February 2025 changed my mind. It is titled “Absci R&D Day 2024”. The portion devoted to ABS-201 and hair loss starts at 1:19:40 and lasts for over an hour.
Also check out the company’s case study page on ANS-201. Interestingly, in the notes to the key mechanism of action diagram, they mention that ABS-201 also has the potential to restore hair pigmentation.
Absci currently has over 77,000 square feet of space between:
- A state-of-the-art wet lab in Vancouver WA (US).
- An advanced AI research lab in New York City (US).
- A drug innovation center in Zug (Switzerland).
The company plans to begin Phase 1 clinical trials for ABS-201 in the first half of 2026. Their preclinical model demonstrated improved hair regrowth in comparison to minoxidil.
Absci ABS-201 versus Hope Medicine HMI-115
Note that Absci’s AI-developed ABS-201 is similar to Hope Medicine’s HMI-115 that is currently in Phase 2 trials. The latter prolactin receptor antibody treatment for male and female pattern hair loss was originally developed by Bayer (Germany) who received a patent for it in January 2019. A few months later, Hope Medicine announced a global licensing agreement with Bayer to advance the development of this monoclonal antibody to target the prolactin receptor.
In the above screenshot from Absci’s earlier mentioned recent presentation video, they elaborate on some of the key differences between ABS-201 and HMI-115.
HMI-115 is granted Fast Track Designation by the FDA. No idea what that means in terms of a real time line…probably later than Pelage, and this is for endometriosis, but I would bet we will be seeing it being used off-label as an injectable in the scalp where it would potentially be more powerful than what Dr. Sinclair found.
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/hope-medicine-incs-hmi-115-received-us-fda-fast-track-designation-accelerating-global-development-302632958.html
thanks pinotq…so unfortunately I see there is no mention in the article of it being used for hair. this is dissapointing. ..you mention that injecting in the scalp would be more powerful then what sinclair found. where did you learn that sinclair didnt see much promise with it being used for hairloss? ive been trying to locate results but really dont see much feedback.
The HMI Sinclair results were mixed from what I can tell. This is my understanding based on reading various articles but primarily from the videos promoting ABS-201 where they outline the HMI shortcomings such as the occupancy percentag they obtained. So while I am assuming the HMI hair trial fell short of expectations ( no current FDA next phase, only in China), the HMI Phase 2 endometriosis trial was considered succesful enough to garner fast track designation. It is the same antibody used in the hair trial. What I am suggesting is that it may be used “off label”. The HMI hair trial was injected into the stomach. My undestanding from reading about potency of systemic applications vs direct local scalp applications, is that local application generally delivers much more potency to the area where it is needed most. That doesn’t mean there won’t be other issues related to local application, but you could reasonably make the argument that whatever benefit was derived from systemic application would be at least a bit better if injected in the scalp. So it is possible that HMI could be a bridge to better treatments with off label use. Although, if Pelage beats HMI to FDA approval (which I believe it will), it may be a mute point. I’m just pointing this out as a another possibility. I would only try if a respected Dr offered it as an option.
Sinclair only said that hopemed was not really focused on hairloss. Pinotq’s point on meso therapy is just something he came up with, there is no data on it
Tom, I am not sure what the relevance of Sinclair’s statement is to my comment but Sinclair goes on to say that “the dosing was probably too low”. While the HMI clinical trial did not match the results seen in the monkey study, of the “12 male patients at the end of the trial, the mean non-vellus target area hair count (TAHC) increased by 14 hairs/cm2, compared to that of the baseline”: https://www.hopemedinc.com/company-release-37?utm. So HMI-115 did show benefit. With respect to topical vs systemic application, there are in fact studies suggesting for example that the topical use of dutasteride (0.02%) through microneedling sessions along with daily use of topical Minoxidil 5% has better results with less systemic side effects than oral Dutasteride (0.5 mg)”. https://academic.oup.com/qjmed/article/117/Supplement_2/hcae175.207/7903544?login=false I think the best analogy for what I am suggesting is in fact dutasteride. It is not FDA approved for hair loss, it is prescribed off label, and it has a relatively long half life….which would be similar to HMI-115 if it were approved for endometriosis. Note that in the presentation recently released by ABSCI, Andreas Busch, who was in R&D with Bayer when they first started working with prolactin said “We do think that we have an antibody with a formulation which can be applied subcutaneously, also very important for that indication.” So even Absci believes that subcutaneous delivery is one of the keys to optimizing their antibody for success, along with a longer half-life and greater soluability. https://seekingalpha.com/article/4852609-absci-corporation-absi-discusses-absminus-201-program-and-clinical-approach-for-androgenetic?utm_source=chatgpt.com
The relevance of Sinclair’s statement to your comment is that that’s what the first half of your comment is about.
SubQ is not a scalp injection.
Thanks Tom for being the voice of reason. Pinotq is speaking out of his depth and his statements are only wild speculations.
HMI115 is an antibody. Antibodies are only administered subcutaneous or intravenous. There is no chance it is taken topically.
Sinclair said AGA was not HopeMed‘s priority and its dosing was probably too low.
That’s about it. I reckon HopeMed is aware of this and a phase 3 trial is done with higher dosage.
I’m genuinely so excited for this company, the first one that looks promising enough to help target grey hairs.
This and PP405 is looking very exciting. We just need Eirion to move faster with ET-02 and we could have 3 very exciting potential treatments for hair loss.
100% agree but I don’t know about Eirion, they’ve been so inactive for so long now.
This one looks promising! Nice before and after images in the presentation. Really hoping it’s legit.
WHEN ARE WE GOING TO GET AN UPDATE FROM DR RASSMAN ON HIS HAIR NEVUS TREATMENT FOR AGA?!?! Nobody has responded to me! Admin get an update please!
There’s no new update just people hypothesizing everything :(
And AI-hallucinations.
Yeah lol
Pinotq can you please elaborate on “HMI-115’s ambiguity”?
Great question Tom! I followed up and learned this: HMI-115 produced results that were impossible to interpret cleanly — not clearly successful, not clearly failed — because the trial design left too many unanswered questions. The problem was that the human trial design did not allow anyone to conclude why it underperformed. 1. Exposure ambiguity: Was the drug underdosed? In macaques: Very high mg/kg IV dosing, Short intervals, ~90% receptor occupancy. In humans: Much lower absolute mg dosing, Subcutaneous delivery, Longer intervals,
~70% receptor occupancy (as Sinclair later noted). So when the human results were weaker, everyone was left asking: “Did PRLR blockade fail…or did we simply never hit the exposure needed to see the effect?” There was no way to answer that from the data. There was also no clear PK → PD → efficacy linkage. A strong antibody program usually shows: Dose → blood level → receptor occupancy → biological effect → clinical effect. HMI-115’s public human data did not establish this chain clearly. Occupancy was measured, but: not clearly tied to hair outcomes, not clearly sustained at trough; Hair outcomes were reported, but: not cleanly correlated with exposure, not benchmarked against a “maximally blocked” cohort. So again: If hair didn’t regrow — why not? If it regrew modestly — was that the ceiling or just partial engagement?
No clean answer. Finally, the study design made “negative” indistinguishable from “inconclusive”. HMI-115 ended up in the worst possible category for a drug: “Biologically interesting, but clinically inconclusive.” That’s deadly in development because: Investors don’t fund ambiguity, regulators don’t approve ambiguity, Clinicians don’t adopt ambiguity. Even today, smart people still argue:
“It worked in macaques — humans were underdosed” “PRLR blockade just isn’t strong enough in humans”. And both interpretations are still plausible.
AI also said this: How Absci is explicitly trying to avoid this? Absci – ABS-201 is designed to answer those questions unambiguously. 1. Forcing the exposure question to be answered by planning: IV SAD cohorts (clean PK), Very high SC doses (up to ~1800 mg), Long observation windows. Absci is essentially saying: “We will know whether sustained, near-maximal PRLR blockade does or does not regrow hair in humans.” If ABS-201 fails at those exposures: the mechanism fails not the dosing. That’s clarity. 2. Separating PK uncertainty from biology. Starting with IV dosing eliminates: absorption variability formulation limits, injection-volume ceilings, If IV exposure doesn’t move hair biology: that’s a real strike against the target HMI-115 never fully did this in AGA. 3. Designing the trial so either outcome is actionable: ABS-201’s design aims to yield one of two clean conclusions: Outcome A: It works. …Clear dose–response….Sustained hair count increases…Justifies Phase 2b/3. Outcome B: It doesn’t work even at maximal exposure, with confirmed receptor blockade, with adequate time. That lets Absci kill the program decisively — not let it linger in purgatory. Why this matters to you as a hair-loss realist: Most treatments = maintenance, game-changers are rare. HMI-115 failed the clarity test, but ABS-201 is being built specifically not to fail that test — even if the answer turns out to be “no.”
Some takeaways from a little AI research regarding the Absci-201 trial length: 1) two phases are being run sequentially under one protocol, which stretches the total calendar time, meaning phase 3 is next; 2) Phase alone can take a year or more because it involves a large monoclonal antibody and a new biological pathway, it is testing both IV and injection forms of application; 3) Absci’s timeline shows that it is being careful. They are mapping exposure thoroughly, pushing dose intelligently, and trying not to repeat HMI-115’s ambiguity; 4) We won’t know if ABS-201 works until late 2026 at the earliest whereas Pelage could be in Phase 3 while Absci is still proving basic efficacy.
My next post is sponsored content. Any insulting comments will be removed.
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It is mostly written by the sponsor, with a significant number of changes by me. I think it may be the first ever post where I did not write the content.
Is there a drug on the horizon that can regrow hair in completely bald areas?
PP405 induced new hair growth from follicles where no hair was previously present — offering early validation of its regenerative potential.
Damn, you said that so eloquently lol
Phase 1 / 2 till 07/2028
https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT07317544
It’s so long…!
But didn’t they say in that KoL video that they hoped to go to Ph3 afterwards, so potential approval in 2030?
On slide 34 in the presentation posted by admin they say the aim is FDA approval by 2029-2030.
Regarding Romes’ comment about about that being so long, in absolute terms that may be true, but in relative terms regarding time from discovery to clinic that’s quick, which is part of Absci’s value proposition; using AI to accelerate drug development.
As they mentioned potential FDA approval in 2029/2023 that must mean that they expect to already be able to initiate p2b/p3 before the end of the current trial. Hopefully they can go directly to p3.
If that’s the end date for phase 2 then that’s not bad at all if they start phase 1 and finish phase 2 in just 2 and a half years.
That’s very similar to Pelage timeline from phase 1 to completion of phase 2. I think it took Pelage 2 years to complete phase 1 and 2.
Does anyone know how good Absci ABS-201 is compared to PP405?
I don’t think there’s efficacy data for either of them yet, that comes with Ph3.
It’s a p1/2a trial. Remains to be seen whether they still need to do a p2b I guess.
LOL… You have to stand in awe at the level of bs the FDA forces on clinical trials. And the biotechs / pharmaceuticals all pretend like it’s acceptable.
FDA is the problem. Like many government programs, they are political corrupt and need be turned upside down. AI is here now and the FDA needs to utilize it but big pharma has them in their wallet. However, for the first in in long time we have someone pushing to re-organize it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9OKG0JDaoM I like good news
Thanks, the videos for Absci ABS-201 are coming fast. Hopefully this one was not posted yet:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IG7ZR87uwUE
If anyone has the time, the Absci website is an interesting read regarding the investment they have made in AI and the throughput speed of designing and testing millions of unique AI-generated designs a week. They also have a huge Wet Lab where they validate these designs in real tissue. https://www.absci.com/technology/
I found it interesting that Dr. Sinclair said, beginning at the 7:28 mark that “recruitment is always a challenge in any clinical trial”. This is in contrast to what Danile Gil said: “Unlike pricey and lengthy cancer and gene therapy clinical trials, a hair loss clinical trial is quick to enroll and conduct, and therefore considerably less expensive.” I hope thats not an indicator of a potentially slower moving clinical trial process. Dr. Sinclair seems to be saying there is competition for subjects bewteen various trials in Australia. He says they just completed recruitung 140 subjects for a sub lingual minoxidil trial. Perhaps the number of subjects is vastly different between Australia and the US. That said, the HMI-115 trial started 9/2023 and ended 11/2024 according to clinical trial.gov…..but that’s not much different than Pelage which was 6/2024 ending 10/2025.
Topical vs intravenous, as simple as that.
Simetimes recruits get paid nicely too which makes it much easier to gather patients with proper compliance.
Australia has a population of 27 million. The US is at 345 million.
Yet Veradermics has still had to go all out in advertising their US trial recruitment. Every day I get their ad on Instagram.
I think one big issue is in getting people to stop existing treatments if they want to participate in trials. Not to forget that almost all the hair loss trials have age, sex and Norwood scale requirements of their volunteers.
And with Australia’s major cities so spread out, it might not be easily feasible for people from other cities to come to Melbourne Sinclair Clinic too often.
I applied for the Veradermics trial but got rejected. A bit humbling getting rejected from letting people experiment on you to test a hair loss drug because you’ve lost too much hair. :)
(I’d prefer to do pelage anyway.)
Have you ever applied for a clinical trial? If you take Finasteride, you are automatically disqualified. How many people applying for a hair loss clinical trial aren’t already taking Finasteride? Plus, there is a high chance you would have to travel every week and still not receive the actual treatment. Furthermore, the trial site might be 150 miles from your home.
Well as long as these Experts look like that bald guy I dont trust any of that what they say. :-) … when there will be finally a guy looking like Javier Milei or Reinhold Messner then I am convinced.
Yeah Messner is goated. 81 and still thick like a teenager.
Man, what kind of limited thinking capabilities someone can have… There are so many reasons why that guy might have no hair despite being part of a team that is trying to bring a working medication to market.
– Maybe he has alopecia areata and not AGA.
– Maybe he lost his hair decades ago.
– Maybe hair is not that important to him.
– And even if Absci’s ABS-201 works, it is still in development and needs to be studied thoroughly before a physician who is part of the development team would take it.
I think John Doe was joking with the smiley face.
I said something similar in the past (in terms of scientists who are bothered by their own hair loss probably being more passionate). But the potential (and ongoing) income is likely a bigger drive for most.
On a somewhat related note, if anyone has updates to the below, feel free to add in a comment. It has to be solid proof, ideally on the surgeon’s own website.
https://www.hairlosscure2020.com/hair-transplant-surgeons-also-hair-transplants/
As an add on to my AI comments above, I didn’t want to leave the wrong impressison Absci because AI it says ABS-201 could potentially be a very big deal and that the higher dosing, higher occuancy strategy is totally resonable and could plausibly result in high efficacy. But it points out reasons why more won’t necessarily change the outcome: Receptor occupancy can matter a lot for antibodies when you’re near the steep part of the exposure–response curve. But it’s not a universal rule that “70% fails, 90% works.” What determines whether that gap is decisive: Where the clinical effect “kicks in” (the occupancy threshold for meaningful biology in scalp tissue); Trough occupancy (not just peak) over the dosing interval; Target expression + turnover in the relevant compartment (scalp skin / follicles); Tissue penetration (blood → dermis → follicular units), which can be rate-limiting for large molecules. It also ponts out that: PRLR biology, antibody PK, and follicle cycling dynamics can differ between macaques and humans. A macaque “wow” doesn’t guarantee a human “wow,” even at matched occupancy.
Just for fun, I asked AI whether it thought Pelage or Absci had the better potential to regrow hair. Here is what it said:
Why Pelage is better positioned for regeneration
Mechanism: Pelage is pro-growth, Absci is anti-inhibition
Pelage Pharmaceuticals – PP405
Targets a metabolic / stem-cell activation pathway
(mitochondrial pyruvate handling in follicular stem cells).
The biology is upstream of androgen signaling and
directly tied to re-entering anagen.
This is the same category of biology that historically
produces:
new terminal hairs, not just thicker existing
hairs
This is why PP405 behaves more like a regenerative
signal, not just a brake-release.
Absci – ABS-201
Blocks prolactin receptor (PRLR) signaling.
PRLR activity is associated with catagen promotion /
growth suppression.
Blocking it likely:
prolongs anagen
improves hair caliber
rescues borderline miniaturized follicles
That’s constructive, but it’s not a classic regeneration
pathway.
Latest seminar with Ralf Paus:
https://youtu.be/uALbYjaLEDk?si=H12lQNpuKoGcnfkX
Nice find baby.
Ditto…that is fascinating!
Great find, Ben! From the same series, major insights by Rodney Sinclair on the connection with HMI-115 :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcEIJKfa_Ew&t=719s
(@Admin: feel free to discard this if someone else posted it already)
Thanks Ben and Pellata.
Thanks Pellata!
They are targeting ’29 or ’30 for FDA approval. Can’t help, but getting excited about this one. Fingers crossed!
Hopemed’s p2 data still not being released is a bad sign. Hopefully absci’s approach is different enough and the p1 shows a strong efficacy signal.
At 21:45 Busch, the guy who did the macaque studies with this antibody at Bayer, explains that when he came to Absci they tweaked the half-life and solubility of it. In about a year we might know more.
Malte, I also listened to the entire presentation and was very encouraged by the how they have tweaked the antibody. And the presentation team would seem to have a lot of credibility. The guy from Bayer is obviously well versed in the antibody and Dr. Sinclair will be working with it (in its new tweaked form) for the second time. I have to admit that I had written off Hope Medicine for similar reasons that Tom mentioned. But my interest level is again elevated and I will listen to the entire presentation one more time. Just as HMI-115 does not appear to have worked to the level they expected, ABS-201 could similarly fail for some unexpected reason. But ABS-201 is going back on my list of favored prospects with Pelage. And it can’t hurt having a competitive race to market between 2 legitimate companies with solid scientific research pedigrees.
I also listened to the whole thing over the past days. Thanks @pellata for pointing out Dr. Sinclair’s part. I found the following parts interesting:
* Sinclair did the HMI-115 study (famous “Moeman”-participant) and said the “receptor occupancy” was 90 % in the macaque-study BUT only 70 % in the human study. Apparently this makes a big difference in antibody-efficacy in general.
* I did a deep-dive and found out that the macaques were treated with approximately 400 mg (or 40 mg per kg) HMI-115 every second week (intravenous, not subcutan). The highest human dose was 240 mg! So is the outcome of HMI-115 only dependent on dosing (and freqency?)? Makes one think. If yes then we have a solution for HMI-115s lack of efficacy…
* This is somehow confirmed by AbSci’s dosing strategy in the trial design: the cohort with the highest dose is injected with 1800 mg.
* According to Sinclair HopeMed primary interest was always endometriosis and AGA was just an “afterthought”. I find that almost funny, as AGA is a market magnitudes bigger!
All this makes me in fact much more hopeful for HMI-115 as it seems to me it is in fact very effective, but only in the right doses. And the AbSci “AI”-blablabla and “receptor affinity” is just marketing mumbojumbo. They are very good in their marketing though, in contrast to HopeMed…
The shocking regrowth-effects in the monkeys plus the simple treatment (injections biweekly for 6 months) always made HMI-115 (or AbSci whatever) the by far best possible future treatment in my opinion.
@Ben thanks for this detailed deep-dive. That’s indeed quite encouraging for ABS-201 possible efficacy in humans.
Also the possible hair repigmentation make this an especially attractive treatment option imo. Judging from the marketing part of Absci’s presentation they will be demanding a high premium for it though. Happy to pay if it actually works.
Thanks for the detailed analysis Ben. I have yet to watch the video, but Paus is always great.
Unfortunately, he has been involved in dozens of areas in hair and I wonder if he will end up like Ken Washenik and George Cotsarelis? i.e., Lots of positive comments for decades, but nothing major brought to market via his work or partnerships.
https://www.hairlosscure2020.com/two-decades-of-quotes-from-dr-george-cotsarelis/
I also thought it was interesting how in the Q&A at the end all presenters seemed skeptical about the efficacy of CB-03-01 (saying it’ll essentially be as effective as topical minoxidil!), although one can imagine they have some bias against a competitor.
More from Landon Donovan:
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/_HeXi2Q4Wag
And this:
https://www.tmz.com/2024/06/18/landon-donovan-blames-viral-euro-2024-look-hair-transplant-ex-teammate-claims/
https://www.reddit.com/r/ussoccer/comments/1di7bjk/what_is_going_on_with_landon_donovans_hair/
https://www.aol.com/articles/former-soccer-star-landon-donovan-035912924.html
Do you think this is one of the most hopeful treatments (although it’s really early as in phase 1)?
I think we need to first see what Hope Medicine does when it comes to Phase 3 for HMI-115. I doubt that Absci ABS-201 is much better compared to Hope Medicine HMI-115, in spite of the numerous benefits that Absci proclaims in its latest press release. I could be wrong of course, and may be underestimating the Absci generative AI magic for drug discovery.
They are hyping this up big time, I don’t know if Landon Donovan is a good “ambassador“ but okay.
It would be interesting to have an opinion of an expert regarding the differences between HMI115 and Abs201 and if the latter can be better in effects – apparently Abs201 can be administered in a lower frequency but tbh I couldn’t care less.
This project is giving me the most question marks of them all. At the same time it should be a good sign regarding HopeMed.
It is also strange that Dr. Rodney Sinclair is leading these ABS-201 Phase 1 trials after also leading the HMI-115 Phase 1 trials. Especially after knowing that the latter is already a few years ahead in trials.
He must think that this product is significantly better. Or he just gets paid a decent amount to conduct such trials and does not care if the two products are similar to each other.
Also the CSO of AbSci was part of the team of Bayer which developed HMI-115 (it had a different code back then). The patent was bought from a small start-up from Germany (can’t recall the name) and that guy was in charge of Bayer‘s monkey tests. Later it was sold to HopeMed in 2019. The antibody itself was developed many years before that, I think it dates back to 2008!
Regarding Sinclair, I think he just likes the money (the trial enrolls over 220 people), as there‘s no way he has comprehensive knowledge regarding antibody design. The bigger question is why AbSci chooses Sinclair?
And Ralf Paus – he is and was a board member on many hair ventures over the years. For example Dermaliq and HairDao. That doesn’t say much per se, I reckon he also likes the money and after all he is an expert (although with zero track record).
Also: Hopemed received a fast track designation from the FDA last week for HMI-115 for Endometriosis.
Very interesting about the CSO.
I’m starting to get more on board with this treatment, it’s sounding better and better, not gonna lie.
Cathie Wood interviewing the Absci CEO is quite something. He has a knack for getting well known researchers, investors and sportsmen on board.
But still Phase 1 of course.
Amazing new updates.
It seems like Dr. Paus and Dr. Sinclair are both now involved.
As well as balding soccer star Landon Donovan, whose short video is encouraging!
I just can’t figure out why on earth Absci’s CEO used the HMI-115 photos in his Tweet from earlier this year.
Because it’s the same MOA and they don’t have other pics themselves?
They do have other pics. See the one I have at the top of the post. The CEO posted that mice before and after photo on X on the same day that he posted the HMI-115 macaque before and after photo.
Also see the investor presentation link I posted in bold in the bullet point near the top. Lots of information in there that could have been used.
https://investors.absci.com/news-releases/news-release-details/absci-announces-first-participants-dosed-phase-12a-headlinetm
Amazing to be honest. They really believe in this otherwise they wouldn’t put their funds in it.
Also the number of patients is unusually high for phase 1.
But so many questions…why with Sinclair who also did HopeMed? Do they face IP-issues with Bayer and HopeMed – same antibody? The CSO of AbSci was in charge of the Bayer-division which developed HMI-115 (it had another code back then)? The advantages of AbSci seem to only affect dosing frequency?
I could go on and on. Admin to the rescue!
On the other hand it makes me kind of optimistic regarding HopeMed. I mean the thought of having subcutane injections every two weeks for 6 months (much more convenient than topicals or tablets) and then no more for years and it still grows back all of your hair would make it the perfect treatment for me.
Thanks for sharing Rome!
@Ben injections would be indeed way more convenient and if it then also reverses grey hair I’d be willing to spend quite a bit of money on this. On Twitter they mention though it’s “a potential once-quarterly injection”. Would be even more convenient!
https://x.com/SeanRMcClain/status/1980440753429184918
I am in Lisbon for web summit. they had a panel with Absci CEO. He said they will start clinical trials next year.
He also said they will have phase 2 readouts next year. The timelines seem very short.
he also said he expects the drug to hit market in 2029/2030.
Romulus, I am reading the same …. they are quick.
https://www.investing.com/news/transcripts/earnings-call-transcript-absci-q3-2025-revenue-miss-overshadows-eps-match-93CH-4353520
Did you find out whether this treatment will be effective for treating grey hair?
He mentioned specifically it would repigment hair. CEO I mean.
@john doe thx for the link.
I think its good that we will have efficacy results by end of next year. That way we can determine if this will amount to anything.
Thank you!
Where are the trials happening, is there a sign up link?
I believe in Melbourne and Brisbane Australia.
Hopefully they can re-pigment the beard too and not just hair.
How often do the injections need to be administered? Or is it a one-time treatment?
Once quarterly.
That’s going to be a pricey affair. A few thousand euros/dollars a year?
Easily, especially if it also repigments grey hair.
The before/after pictures of the treated macaques would imply you will only need a few treatment sessions and then have results that last a few years.
Guess we’ll have to wait for the human trial results.
Phase 1 already starts in December 2025. That’s quicker than expected! They must be really convinced.
https://investors.absci.com/news-releases/news-release-details/absci-host-kol-seminar-abs-201-androgenetic-alopecia-program/
Yes, hopefully they can blaze through the trials like Veradermics and Pelage! I think it is quite promising.
I think neither Veradermics nor Pelage are particularly „blazing“.
Veradermics is using an already approved medicine and hence could skip one phase.
Pelage was founded in 2017. Research at UCLA happened even before that.
Both are going through clinical trials quickly. Veradermics initiated both p2 and p2/3 around the same time. Pelage finished p1, and p2a + extension in 2-2.5 years. Quite fast.
Another candidate to watch closely. I would be already extremely happy if we finally have a drug to reverse my premature greying that started when I was 18. Fingers crossed.
image is exactly same of Hope medicines .. it’s doubtful. how can they use the same image for their promotion or exhibit.
Sorry, that’s clearly the photo of HopeMed (or Bayer if you want).
HopeMed is probably finished with phase 3 before Absci starts their phase 1. They are a good 5 years ahead.
Absci claims to have a better formulation, I don’t know if that causes better results.
I hope they are successful but timewise they are so far behind that I actually wonder why they would pursue the same avenue as HopeMed, maybe even causing IP-issues?
If Absci really made their own research and found convincing results in their antibody then I am actually hopeful that Hopemed is good too.
Not sure if hopemed is still in the game, the p2 in china finished last year I think. And the p1 results weren’t that good.
https://www.hairlosscure2020.com/hope-medicine-raises-56-million/
Yeah, hope that’s still true. They are quite slow at least.
https://x.com/hairypapasmurf/status/1935389847234978122
Yeah that’s basically what I said.
They are not similar, it’s the same exact picture.
It’s about time. A startup revolution based on AI drugs is what’s needed, but the FDA will do everything in its power to keep things from moving forward.
On par with Minoxidil isn’t exactly getting me out of bed, but the potential to white hair is very intriguing.
Hello, kindly please do you mean it will help get rid of white hair?
Cautiously optimistic for this one. Total funding since their inception is 222 million USD.
The public comparison with HMI-115 is somewhat brutal and hints that it is a failure.
If they can start trials then we have another player. Fingers crossed.
To my eye the comparators are all about things other than effectiveness that matter to a drug manufacturer: stability, potential solubility in carrier solutions, potential for topical rather than intradermal injection application, etc.
Typo Admin: “Absci received a $20 investment” should be $20 million.
Thanks Yoda!
We know more than we ever knew about baldness, how long do we still have to wait for a cure? Is it always 5 years away? I’ve been waiting these 5 years for 30 years.
I honestly thought Follica – which developed the most efficacious protocol since finasteride (44% regrowth compared to baseline) – would have been on the market by last year. And instead, after decades of development, Phase I-II completed, retail-facing website and clinic recruitment, and it’s gone.
Developed the most efficacious protocol since finasteride? It’s just microneedling. There’s really nothing in the patent which differs from what you can do at home with a good device and a bottle of minox, other than maybe causing less bleeding and crusting.