Special patch reliably eliminates baldness
Last reviewed: 12.03.2022
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Currently, the pharmacological industry presents a whole list of medicines aimed at eliminating baldness. However, the vast majority of these drugs do not affect the immediate causes of alopecia: oxidative stress and impaired local circulation. Scientists decided to correct this mistake and came up with a special dissolving microneedle patch, which contains cerium nanoparticles that act on the causative factors of baldness. Using this technique, experts were able to return the hairline in a rodent faster than using other known methods of treatment.
It should be noted that most often in patients with androgenic alopecia there is a lack of a vascular network that supplies hair follicles with nutrients and cytokines. In addition, the accumulating reactive oxygen species in the skin on the head can cause early cell death of those structures that are responsible for the formation and growth of new hair.
A little earlier, experts managed to determine that cerium nanoparticles have the ability to imitate enzymes that eliminate the excessive accumulation of reactive oxygen species. It lowers the degree of oxidative stress in liver damage, wound injuries, and hydrocyanic dementia. But such nanoparticles are not able to overcome the outer layer of the skin. Therefore, scientists set themselves the goal of coming up with a minimally invasive method for transporting cerium nanoparticles deep into the root hair structures, which could help restore hair growth.
The researchers' first step was to coat the nanoparticles with a biodegradable polyethylene glycol lipid substance. Next, the specialists developed a soluble microneedle patch, consisting of a mixture of hyaluronic acid and cerium nanoparticles. The resulting patch was tested on rodents that had foci of alopecia. According to the results of the experiment, it was found that the newly developed patch showed relatively fast positive results, and new blood supply vessels developed near the hair follicles. In addition, there was a decrease in the amount of oxidative stress substances.
Of course, the study did not end there: further studies are expected to study the possibility, effectiveness and safety of using such soluble patches in humans. Scientists are optimistic and already declare that the new remedy has every chance in the future to completely defeat baldness in people.
The study was conducted by a team of Chinese researchers from Zhejiang University in Hangzhou. Full material is presented on the page