On May 18th, STEM CELLS Translational Medicine has published a new study which showed how a solution that contains growth factors, extracted from adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADSCs) is an effective and viable alternative to currently approved ways to combat androgenetic alopecia.
Androgenetic alopecia (AGA) – also known as “male pattern baldness” is a condition that could be caused by genetic, hormonal, and environmental factors. According to various statistics, it affects over 50 per cent of all male population and about the same percentage of women over 50. While this condition is not life-threatening, it often causes a significant decrease in self-esteem and therefore psychological health. Alopecia patients have a choice of several effective solutions; however, current options often also have significant side-effects like loss of libido and erectile dysfunction. Therefore, there is a continued effort to develop a much safer alternative to combat hair loss.
Adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells produce several growth facts which are proven to positively influence hair thickness and follicle size, which is why they were chosen as a study target for a solution, that was called “adipose-derived stem cell constituent extract” (ADSC-CE).
“Recent studies have shown that ADSCs promote hair growth in both men and women with alopecia. However, no randomized, placebo-controlled trial in humans has explored the effects and safety of adipose-derived stem cell constituent extract (ADSC-CE) in AGA. We aimed to assess the efficacy and tolerability of ADSC-CE in middle-aged patients with AGA in our study, hypothesizing that it is an effective and safe treatment agent,”
– said Sang Yeoup Lee, M.D., Ph.D., of the Family Medicine Clinic and Research Institute of Convergence of Biomedical Science and Technology, Pusan National University Yangsan Hospital in South Korea.
He led the group of researchers, which also included colleagues from Pusan National University School of Medicine, Pusan National University Yangsan Hospital and T-Stem Co., Ltd.
The team behind the study has recruited a group of 38 patients (29 men and 9 women) that suffer from AGA and separated them into two groups. First groups received ADSC-CE, while the second was assigned placebo. Twice a day, every patient has used the solution provided (depending on the group) by applying it to the scalp with their fingers.
“After 16 weeks, the ADSC-CE group reported a significant increase in hair thickness and the size of hair follicles” reported the study’s senior author, Young Jin Tak.
Researchers that took part in this study think, that the data they have received confirms the efficacy and safety of the solution for people with male pattern baldness. The size and thickness of hair cover have increased while no significant side effects were noticed.
Dr Lee said,
“Our findings suggest that the application of the ADSC-CE topical solution has enormous potential as an alternative therapeutic strategy for hair regrowth in patients with AGA, by increasing both hair density and thickness while maintaining adequate treatment safety. The next step should be to conduct similar studies with large and diverse populations to confirm the beneficial effects of ADSC-CE on hair growth and elucidate the mechanisms responsible for the action of ADSC-CE in humans.”
