Navigation
Hair Loss News Archives
June 2010
Genetic roots of some hair loss identified
Alopecia areata affects more than five million Americans
June 2010
A common form of hair loss called
alopecia areata is linked to eight genes, researchers
have found.
Alopecia areata can begin with a sudden whitening of the
hair and then loss of patches of hair on the scalp that
in some cases may progress to total loss of hair on the
scalp or body.
Currently, progression of the disorder is
unpredictable, but the new findings could help determine
which patients will have severe forms, scientists say.
In Thursday's issue of the journal Nature, Angela
Christiano, a professor of dermatology at Columbia
University Medical Center in New York, and her
colleagues report eight genes contribute to the
condition.
Alopecia areata was originally thought to be related to
psoriasis, but psoriasis treatments failed to help. It
is now considered an autoimmune disorder, and many of
the genetic regions implicated in the new study are also
associated with other autoimmune diseases such as
rheumatoid arthritis and Type 1 diabetes that have
treatments, the report said.
"Finally, we have the possibility of developing drugs
that specifically target the mechanism behind the
disease,” Christiano said in a release.
The study looked at 1,054 cases of the disease and 3,278
control cases without the disorder to identify the
disease-susceptibility genes.
Alopecia areata affects more than five million
Americans, according to the National Alopecia Areata
Foundation, which funded the research.
Vicki Kalabokes, the group's president, called the
research exciting, since the disorder affects so many
people worldwide with unmet medical needs. Children who
are affected may experience social stigma, she said.