Sulforaphane increases the expression of the dihydrotestosterone (DHT)-degrading enzyme, 3 -hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3 -HSD) in the liver, which accelerates DHT degradation, thereby inhibiting hair loss in the animal model. In this study, we elucidated its underlying mechanism and demonstrated that sulforaphane has hair loss inhibitory functions in RAW264.7 macrophage cells and Hepa1c1c7 cells at the cellular and gene levels. The gene expression level of an isoform of 3 -HSD, Akr1c2, increased in a dose-dependent manner when these cells were treated with sulforaphane, but there were no significant differences at the gene levels of Akr1c2 and Dhrs9 for the negative control mixture of biotin, dexpanthenol, and L-menthol. These studies indicated that sulforaphane is involved in regulating the gene expression of Akr1c2. To further determine whether this hair product has effects on alleviating hair loss symptoms, clinical trials were also conducted for 18 weeks. We performed a visual evaluation of the parietal and frontal lines of 23 patients before and after using the product, and then calculated the total number of hairs. This clinical study showed that the parietal lines and bangs visually improved and the number of hairs increased by 6.71% from before using the test product to 18 weeks after using the test product. Taken together, these cellular and clinical studies strongly suggest that sulforaphane may be an active ingredient that significantly alleviates hair loss symptoms.
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