Inhibitor causing male pattern baldness identified

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have identified a protein called Prostaglandin D2 (PGD2) which occurs at elevated levels in the bald scalp areas of men with male pattern baldness, a condition that strikes 8 of 10 men under 70 years old. In both human and animal models, researchers found that PGD2 and its derivative, 15-dPGJ2, inhibit hair growth. The PGD2-related inhibition occurred through a receptor called GPR44, which is a promising therapeutic target for androgenetic alopecia in both men and women with hair loss. Prostaglandins are well characterized for their role in many bodily functions -- controlling cell growth, constricting and dilating smooth muscle tissue -- and a different prostaglandin (F2alpha) is known to increase hair growth.