Category Archives: Psoriasis

Arthritis Drug Tofacitinib Cures Vitiligo: Dr. Brett King

I was not planning to write a post so soon after my prior one, but a new development from today is very interesting and exciting.

Regular blog readers will agree that last year’s most exciting developments in the hair loss world were alopecia areata being cured in a few patients. This feat was achieved by arthritis drug tofacitinib, and then again by bone marrow cancer drug ruxolitinib.

Dr. Brett King from Yale University led the work with tofacitinib, and he was interviewed on the Bald Truth show shortly thereafter. Most people on hair loss forums have not been too optimistic about a cure for alopecia areata also working on patients suffering from androgenetic alopecia (aka male pattern baldness). However, in that interview, Dr. King seemed to imply that it was definitely a possibility.

Since that time, myself and numerous others have eagerly hoped that Dr. King would start testing tofacitinib on patients suffering from male pattern baldness. This is by far the most common form of hair loss in both men and women.

Tofacitinib Cures Vitiligo

Instead, today Dr. King shocked the dermatological world for a second time for a totally different reason. Apparently, tofacitinib citrate cured one of Dr. King’s 53 year old female patient’s vitiligo. This latter condition is a devastating skin disease (Michael Jackson supposedly suffered from it).

Tofacitinib Vitiligo Reversal
Tofacitinib Vitiligo Reversal. Source: JAMA Dermatology.

Tofacitinib is a JAK 1/3 inhibitor that was approved by the US FDA in 2012 for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Below are the before and after images from Dr. King’s latest groundbreaking findings. The source of these images is the full study that can be found in JAMA Dermatology.

Quite a few media outlets have covered this study today, including the UK’s Telegraph and US based CBS News. Here’s to hoping that in 2016 (or sooner), Dr. King publishes yet one more study that finally shows tofacitinib also curing androgenetic alopecia. At least in some patients in which there is also an inflammatory component to the disease.

So far, all of Dr. King’s results from last year and this year suggest that tofacitinib does not lead to any kind of severe side effects when taken under doctor supervision. It should also be noted that Pfizer has filed for FDA approval to treat psoriasis with tofacitinib after successful phase 3 trials.  This is all very encouraging when it comes to the safety profile of this seemingly miraculous drug.

Finally, it seems like tofacitinib might also successfully convert white fat (bad) into brown fat (good).  An important study on this was published in 2014.

Sox9 and the Hair Follicle and Biohacking

Sox9 and the Hair Follicle

— An interesting paper (with Elaine Fuchs as a co-author) on how hair follicle stem cells have a strong sense of identity even after being taken out of their home in the hair follicle and then cultured. The Sox9 protein is the “pioneering factor” in all this.

— The coming age of senolytics. I like to say “coming age of…” a lot these days, and it seems like I am far from the only one. A great article was published last month on Novartis’s push for the first ever anti-aging pill. Make sure to also read my past posts on anti-aging.

— New treatment targeting interleukin-23 could be a break-through in the treatment of psoriasis. Note that interleukin-6 has been associated with hair loss and I might write a post on that in the near future.

— Apparently, all brown eyes can be changed to blue eyes. I have brown ones and will only change them if they can figure how to make them green or golden.

— The world’s first penis transplant, if you discount an earlier one done in China a few years ago that was not entirely successful. Finding a donor is not so easy though.

Biohacking and CRISPR

— An interesting new video on out of control biohacking and its dangers. If you have a DIYbio branch near you, probably worth a visit.

— Also see biohacking and DNA modification in someone’s home. The era of synthetic biology scares and excites people at the same time. Some person will sooner or later purposely create highly destructive organisms.

Scientists warn against editing embryos. More on “DNA Scissors” and CRISPR here. A great new article on engineering the perfect baby. I think a perfect baby is one that never poops or cries, but I doubt that dream will ever be realized.