- Title
- Minoxidil upregulates the expression of vascular endothelial
growth factor in human hair dermal papilla cells.
- Author
- Lachgar S; Charveron M; Gall Y; Bonafe JL
- Address
- Laboratoire de Biologie Cellulaire Cutan´ee, Institut de
Recherche Pierre Fabre, Facult´e de M´edecine Rangueil, Toulouse, France.
- Source
- Br J Dermatol, 138(3):407-11 1998 Mar
- Abstract
- The hair follicle dermal papilla which controls hair growth,
is characterized in the anagen phase by a highly developed vascular network. We have
demonstrated in a previous study that the expression of an angiogenic growth factor called
vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) mRNA varied during the hair cycle. VEGF mRNA is
strongly expressed in dermal papilla cells (DPC) in the anagen phase, but during the
catagen and telogen phases. VEGF mRNA is less strongly expressed. This involvement of VEGF
during the hair cycle allowed us to determine whether VEGF mRNA expression by DPC was
regulated by minoxidil. In addition, the effect of minoxidil on VEGF protein synthesis in
both cell extracts and DPC-conditioned medium, was investigated immunoenzymatically. Both
VEGF mRNA and protein were significantly elevated in treated DPC compared with controls.
DPC incubated with increasing minoxidil concentrations (0.2, 2, 6, 12 and 24 mumol/L)
induced a dose-dependent expression of VEGF mRNA. Quantification of transcripts showed
that DPC stimulated with 24 mumol/L minoxidil express six times more VEGF mRNA than
controls. Similarly, VEGF protein production increases in cell extracts and conditioned
media following minoxidil stimulation. These studies strongly support the likely
involvement of minoxidil in the development of dermal papilla vascularization via a
stimulation of VEGF expression, and support the hypothesis that minoxidil has a
physiological role in maintaining a good vascularization of hair follicles in androgenetic
alopecia.
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