Adenosine increases anagen hair growth and thick hairs in Japanese women with female pattern hair loss

J Dermatol. 2008 Dec;35(12):763-7.
Adenosine increases anagen hair growth and thick hairs in Japanese women with female pattern hair loss: A pilot, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial.
Oura H, Iino M, Nakazawa Y, Tajima M, Ideta R, Nakaya Y, Arase S, Kishimoto J.

Department of Dermatology, School of Medicine, University of Tokushima, Tokushima, Japan.

Adenosine upregulates the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor and fibroblast growth factor-7 in cultured dermal papilla cells. It has been shown that, in Japanese men, adenosine improves androgenetic alopecia due to the thickening of thin hair due to hair follicle miniaturization. To investigate the efficacy and safety of adenosine treatment to improve hair loss in women, 30 Japanese women with female pattern hair loss were recruited for this double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study. Volunteers used either 0.75% adenosine lotion or a placebo lotion topically twice daily for 12 months. Efficacy was evaluated by dermatologists and by investigators and in phototrichograms. As a result, adenosine was significantly superior to the placebo according to assessments by dermatologists and investigators and by self-assessments. Adenosine significantly increased the anagen hair growth rate and the thick hair rate. No side-effects were encountered during the trial. Adenosine improved hair loss in Japanese women by stimulating hair growth and by thickening hair shafts. Adenosine is useful for treating female pattern hair loss in women as well as androgenetic alopecia in men.

This is exciting! I feel like some of the best research is coming out of Japan. Is this available in some form here?

ganny - It should be, and I agree, it seems that most of the good stuff comes from Japan. Sure glad patent medicine doesn't have a monopoly on research.

Gots to get me some adenosine...

This one sounds familiar. Is this 'Adenosine' really that new?

Too bad the economy in Japan is marked "depression" now.

It's not new, just further confirmation.

Here's a link on it that I posted a while back. I'm sure google searches would unearth a lot more on the subject.

http://www.hairlosshelp.com/forums/messageview.cfm?catid=10&threadid=78994&STARTPAGE=1&FTVAR_FORUMVIEWTMP=Linear

Ganny,
This product/topical matches your inquiry.

http://www.macys.com/catalog/product/index.ognc?ID=226512&PartnerID=FROOGLE&BannerID=PD310

Thread on said product above.

http://www.hairlosshelp.com/forums/messageview.cfm?catid=10&threadid=42194

Too expensive, we need a cheap copy!

and no stellar reviews on that site as of yet.

Adenosine increases profibrotic mediators that included TGF-β1, IL-1β, IL-13, plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1), and osteopontin. Since TGF-beta has anti-inflammatory properties the anti-inflammatory action of adenosine is likely at least in part mediated by TGF-beta. Adenosine increases collagen production in order to close the wound. Since it is vital for a living creature to close a wound quickly, fibrotic scars are less of an issue for the body, but closing the wound fast is important.

Do you think long term topical adenosine can cause fibrosis?