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Male pattern baldness, long suspected to be an inherited condition, can now be attributed to a variant in a gene passed along by the mother. Recently, German researchers found an X hormonal marker that is directly linked to alopecia—balding in men.

Genetics and Solutions: Issues in Male Pattern Baldness


by Gabby Hyman
gabby.hyman@hairreplacementreview.com
Hair Replacement Review Columnist

German researchers have revealed that a variation in a genetic data transferred to male infants by their mother may influence male pattern baldness.

Gene Linked to Male Pattern Baldness

For several decades now, the genetic condition androgenetic alopecia is said to influence the body toward creating a hormonal byproduct of testosterone known as DHT. DHT is a substance that clogs, dries or damages healthy hair-growing follicles. Now genomics researcher Markus Nöthen has determined that a variation in the X chromosome passed on by mothers to offspring creates alopecia.

Nöthen's team at the University of Bonn studied 95 families where at least two sons had alopecia. The variations in testosterone genetics—as determined by the mother—were found "very much more often" in men suffering male pattern balding.

Solutions for Balding

Androgenetic alopecia is said to be irreversible. Common hair loss remedies such as Rogaine and Propecia are said to have an influence on hair thickness and follicle health. The former is a topical preparation that can thicken and protect existing hair. The latter is a testosterone medication that may restore health in damaged follicles. In many cases, the topical and oral medications work over a period of time, but hair loss resumes once treatment is discontinued.

For some balding men, medical hair restoration may be the only option for regaining a full head of hair. In this outpatient procedure, physicians harvest healthy hair and follicles from the neck or rear of the head and prepare grafts to plant into bald patches atop the head. Since the hair is transplanted from areas of the scalp that are not genetically pre-determined for DHT production, the new hair can grow without impairment for the rest of the person's lifetime.

About the Author

Gabby Hyman has written for print and online media for more than 20 years. He has created online content for eToys, GoTo.com, Siebel Systems, Avaya, and Nissan UK. He has also been a web consultant to the Governor of California. As an author of fiction, journalism, and poetry, Gabby is a former English professor for the University of Illinois, University of Alaska, and Old Dominion University. He holds an MFA in fiction writing from the University of Alabama.

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Posted on November 1, 2005 at 11:25 AM