Kartogenin regulates hair growth and hair cycling transition

Int J Med Sci. 2022 Mar 6;19(3):537-545. doi: 10.7150/ijms.68434. eCollection 2022.
Kartogenin regulates hair growth and hair cycling transition
Yuhong Chen 1, Lijuan Zhou 2, Yuxin Ding 1, Xiaoshuang Yang 1, Jing Jing 1, Xianjie Wu 1, Jufang Zhang 3, Zhongfa Lu 1

Background: Kartogenin is a heterocyclic compound able to promote the proliferation, migration, and differentiation of various cell types and induce cartilage-like tissue regeneration. However, the role of kartogenin in hair follicles (HFs), remains unknown. We therefore investigated the effects of kartogenin on the regulation of hair growth and hair growth cycle transition. Methods: The effects of kartogenin on the proliferation, cell cycle status, and migration of primary human outer root sheath cells (ORSCs) were evaluated by MTS assay, flow cytometry, Transwell and scratch assays, respectively. We exposed ORSCs to kartogenin (1 µM) and determined changes in mRNA and protein levels of transforming growth factor (TGF)-β2/Smad signaling molecules by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, western blotting, and immunofluorescence. We also examined the effects of kartogenin (10 µM) on HFs in mice by histology following cutaneous injection. Results: Kartogenin enhanced ORSC proliferation and migration function in a dose-dependent manner, and downregulated the expression of TGF-β2/Smad signaling molecules in vitro. Injection of kartogenin delayed catagen phase and increased regenerated hair length in mice in vivo. Conclusions: Kartogenin modulates HF growth and regulates the hair cycle and the TGF-β2/Smad signaling pathway, providing a potential new approach for the treatment of hair loss.

Keywords: Hair follicle; Hair growth; Kartogenin; Outer root sheath cell; Transforming growth factor-β signaling.

Full: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8964329/

Very interesting!!! Any natural compounds you are familiar with that have a similar effect? Haven‘t found anything. Thanks a lot!

Atlas wrote:Very interesting!!! Any natural compounds you are familiar with that have a similar effect? Haven‘t found anything. Thanks a lot!

Kartogenin is a small molecule that has been shown to stimulate cartilage growth in animal studies. It is a natural product that is derived from the roots of the plant Sabal serrulata, also known as saw palmetto. Kartogenin has been studied as a potential treatment for degenerative joint diseases such as osteoarthritis, as it may help to repair and regenerate damaged cartilage tissue. No research in humans yet.

That said, Saw palmetto (Serenoa repens), is the type of fruit of the saw palmetto plant is commonly used to make supplements that are marketed as a natural treatment for prostate problems, somewhat for hair, so there is a difference, being from totally different parts of the plant.

Got it!!! Thanks a lot, for whatever reason I could not find any natural sources. Appreciate your help!

Just revised the above...so new info...

Good luck in finding saw palmetto root extract. It's always the berries that they pick so they can harvest over and over again in these supplements. Root extract would probably kill the plant and would have to regrow new plants all the time. Too costly.

shaftless wrote:Good luck in finding saw palmetto root extract. It's always the berries that they pick so they can harvest over and over again in these supplements. Root extract would probably kill the plant and would have to regrow new plants all the time. Too costly.

Easy and convenient? Not exactly, but available:

https://www.selleckchem.com/products/kartogenin.html

KGN (Selleck Chemicals, TX, USA) was dissolved with dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) as the stock solution. Cells treated with 0.005% DMSO were used as controls. Other reagents applied in the study are listed as follows: 3-methyladenine (3-MA; Selleck Chemicals, TX, USA) (5 mM for 24 h) was used as autophagy inhibitor. Both the signal inhibitor LDN-193189 (LDN; 0.5 μM for 12 h) and the activator SB4 (0.1 μM for 24 h) were purchased from MedChemExpress (MCE, NJ, USA).