Cheng-Ming Chuong, COL17A1, Collagen 17A1, Foxc1, Hair Follicle Stem Cells

COL17A1 Damage: Hair Thinning and Turning into Skin

111 Comments

Update: A blog reader from Brazil sent me something very interesting yesterday. Apparently, there was a study published less than two months ago that concluded that chronic inflammation was turning eye cells into skin cells! Read more here.

Today, the prestigious Science Magazine published two new studies related to hair loss and stem cells. They also had a brief summary on the link between aging, stem cells and alopecia, authored by Dr. Cheng-Ming Chuong from USC who I have mentioned on this blog before.

Update: Below news now also covered in many other sources, including Time, Guardian and the Daily Mail.

Collagen 17A1 and Shrinking Stem Cells

The first study from Japan is titled “Hair follicle aging is driven by transepidermal elimination of stem cells via COL17A1 proteolysis.” For non-scientists, the contents of that study are not very easy to understand without spending some time googling the various technical terms listed in there.

However, an easier to understand article analyzing the above study’s findings concludes that “One reason your hair is thinning is because some of it turns into skin.” The study also discusses shedding of epidermal keratinocytes from the skin surface. A lot of people complain about dandruff, itching and dermatitis throughout their scalp while they are slowly balding, and I have had those problems many times in the past decade.

Nizoral and sunshine have both helped me tackle those problems, but I can never seem to go for more than a few days without at least some itching and skin shedding. Note that a Japanese article on this study actually mentions the word “dandruff” in there when you translate to English.

The study authors found that hair follicles in women over age 55 were smaller and with lower levels of the protein Collagen 17A1 (see more on COL17A1 here). Age-related DNA damage triggers the destruction COL17A1. This in turn triggers the transformation into “epidermal keratinocytes”, aka skin.

It is good to see a study that is devoted to female hair loss sufferers. Moreover, one of the lead authors of the study is also a female by the name of Dr. Emi Nishimura. The researchers also engineered mice to lack the COL17A1 gene, and then found that these mice had no follicle-generating cells.

Foxc1 Activates Nfatc1 and BMP signaling

The second study is titled “Foxc1 reinforces quiescence in self-renewing hair follicle stem cells.” Foxc1 (also known as Forkhead box C1) belongs to the Forkhead family of proteins and transcription factors.

Per these scientists from the University of Colorado, Foxc1 regulates the hair growth cycle, and perhaps manipulating this in future could prevent balding. There is also a strong link between Foxc1, Nfatc1 and bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) signaling.

Hasson & Wong, Farmacia Parati, Topical Finasteride

Hasson & Wong Topical Finasteride Update

99 Comments
Topical Finasteride Gel
Topical Finasteride gel from Xyon Health.

My 2014 post on topical finasteride became one of the most popular ones ever written on this blog. This is not surprising, as hundreds of thousands of people around the world are nervous about taking oral finasteride due to potential side effects. They are all hoping to switch to or start a topical version as soon as possible.

It seems like the topical version will results in fewer side effects and less systemic absorption, although this idea is still debated. Different topical formulations will probably have significantly different levels of systemic absorption depending on technology used.

One can get topical finasteride compounded at any local compounding pharmacy. My own local one said that they fulfill one or two such request each month. However, hair loss sufferers have for years been hoping for reputable multinational pharmacies to manufacture the product. In recent years, two entities have taken the lead in making this finally happen:

  1. Switzerland-based Polichem (now Almirall) via its P-3074 product.
  2. The Canada-based Hasson & Wong clinic via its topical liposomal gel product developed in conjunction with Farmacia Parati of Italy.

Hasson & Wong’s Topical Finasteride Finally Here?

A few days ago, the Hasson & Wong clinic announced on its blog that topical finasteride was finally a done deal and available with a prescription globally. However, their blog post was later removed from their website.

Dr. Victor Hasson has posted on this blog before, and I have talked to him about this via phone in the past. Therefore, I decided to call him last Thursday and find out more about why that blog post was removed. Luckily, he was kind enough to talk to me right away.

According to Dr. Hasson, the reason that the blog post was removed is due to some legal issues and clarifications that are still pending. Throughout the course of developing this topical product, their clinic has had to deal with numerous regulations. I assume that they have to adhere to Canadian, European and US regulations. Dr. Hasson mentioned numerous hurdles and headaches involved in following all these protocols.

In any case, Dr. Hasson is extremely confident about this product. While oral finasteride does not cause major side effects in the vast majority of patients that take the drug according to most studies, there are still some patients who get long-term problems. Usually less than 5 percent, although some recent studies suggest a higher number.

Topical finasteride will likely resolve this issue. According to Dr. Hasson, in the past around 50-60 percent of their patients were on oral finasteride. However, lately this number has declined to around 20 percent. Not surprising considering all the “I am scared of finasteride side effects” threads that we have been reading on hair loss forums in the past year. Not to mention news items about Propecia lawsuits.

Liposomal Gel Formulation

The most exciting things that Dr. Hasson told me about this silicone based liposomal gel topical finasteride product were that:

  1.  It will not be systemically absorbed to any significant extent. In the deleted blog post, it said the topical finasteride systemic absorption rate will be 1/18th the systemic absorption rate of oral finasteride.
  2.  Every morning (or night) when you shower, the silicone in the product will be washed away entirely from your scalp. So that silicone is probably not dangerous, as some have suggested on the forums.

Note that this product is not FDA approved, as the cost and time-frame involved in getting that done is excessively high. So if you do end up using this gel and getting any kind of side effects, I am not responsible whatsoever. It is worth repeating here what I have said a few times before: any hair loss products that you buy should never ever be based on my opinions. I am not a scientist, nor a doctor, nor well versed in biology or chemistry.

European prescriptions will be handled by Farmacia Parati. Canada and US prescriptions will be handled by a local pharmacy in the vicinity of the Hasson & Wong clinic in Vancouver, Canada. This pharmacy will be compounding the product itself. H&W have been using this pharmacy for many years and consider them reliable and trustworthy.

So in summary, we are very close. Moreover, hopefully Polichem will release its P-3074 product in the next year or two so that we can have two choices. Dr. Hasson said that topical dutasteride is next in line. Great idea, considering that my dutasteride for hair loss reviews post is also extremely popular.

FYI — For those in Europe, make sure to read the Italian hair loss forum thread on Hasson & Wong’s topical finasteride gel product.