Topadur Pharma & Eirion Therapeutics: New Hair Growth & Gray Hair Cure Treatments

Today, we begin a series of articles on new companies entering the hair growth industry. One of these companies, Eirion Therapeutics, has treatments for androgenic alopecia as well as hair graying in their pipeline.

Topadur Pharma M119

Based in Switzerland, Topadur Pharma is a clinical stage pharmaceutical company with a focus on the cGMP (cyclic guanosine monophosphate) enzyme regulation system. Through targeting drugs that increase levels of cGMP, Topadur seeks to increase blood circulation and improve cell-to-cell communication to create a therapeutic effect in human tissues. A simple explanatory video of this approach can be seen on Youtube. Topadur’s drug candidate for alopecia, TOP-M119, is currently listed in the final stages of preclinical testing according to the company’s pipeline page. Out of 6 listed programs in the pipeline, TOP-M119 is the second furthest developed drug behind TOP-N53, a wound healing therapy for diabetic ulcers. I recently made contact with Topadur’s CEO, Dr. Reto Naef, who was kind enough to answer some questions for us about the TOP-M119 program; see below.

Q&A With Dr. Reto Naef Topadur CEO

Topadur.com

FT:  How did alopecia become a target indication for your platform of drugs that interact with the cGMP-enzyme regulation system?

RN: This was like putting together pieces of a puzzle to get the bigger picture. cGMP, an essential second messenger that activates intracellular protein kinases in response to the binding of membrane-impermeable peptide hormones to the external cell surface is downregulated in many aging conditions and diseases. Topadur has built a unique platform based on a new drug principle that allows us to increase the intracellular cGMP production and slow down the degradation. Based on this technology we have several drug candidates in development for aging related diseases.

Several years ago, I was attracted by a paper where German scientists described that inner ear hair cells could be made more resistance to sound stress by increasing the intracellular cGMP level. It is well known in the literature that also neuronal cells need to have an optimal intracellular cGMP level to be protected from neurodegeneration caused by neurotoxic compounds. Now, our first drug candidate was targeting chronic wounds which don’t heal. Elderly people or people with diabetes often have a problem with wound healing. This is the result of insufficient local microcirculation which provides nutrient and oxygen to tissue cells, allowing cells to proliferate, an important process for wound healing.

The next puzzle piece was a paper by our Korean collaborators, showing that sildenafil, the active ingredient in Viagra, given topically stimulated the induction of the anagen phase in a mouse hair growth model. Since we had drug candidates which were much more potent than sildenafil and which in contrast to sildenafil also stimulated the production of cGMP we tested them in the same animal model and compared them with minoxidil. After one month we knew that we had something in hand that was more than 1000 times more potent, but also much more efficient compared to minoxidil. Next we tried the drug candidates in a chemotherapy induced hair stress model. And wow, we completely protected hair cells from cyclophosphamide induced toxicity. So we knew from then on, that we have something which is really very promising and offers help for many patients. Right now we are testing the potential of our drug candidate to protect the hair from several stress factor induced hair damaging.    

FT: What is the estimated timeline for M119 to get into human trials at this point?

RN: Drug development is a complicated process which needs quite many resources, time and money. We think we can start clinical trials in humans in 1-2 years.

FT:  Do you have any interest from larger pharmaceutical companies for M119 yet? If not, are you interested in partnering?

RN: There is significant interest from pharmaceutical companies. The big pharma companies usually ask for more data, especially clinical data. The smaller companies often want to partner but they don’t have the financial strength we need to speed-up. However, we are looking into many ways to speed up the process and we are always open for partnering discussions.

We certainly hope that Dr. Naef and his company are able to speed up the process for TOP-M119 and land an important partnership. Finally, I’m told that TOP-M119 is soon to be tested on human tissue in vitro and there is likely to be a published study to follow.

 

Eirion Therapeutics ET-02 & ET-03

One of the most interesting new companies that we have seen in years, Eirion Therapeutics of Woburn, Massachusetts, burst onto the scene this month with the announcement of a $40M investment and licensing deal with the Shanghai Haohai Biological Technology company of China. Eirion Therapeutics is an self-described aesthetic dermatology company with treatments in development for crow’s feet, excessive perspiration, androgenic alopecia, and hair graying. Interestingly, the company is developing both topical (ET-02) and oral (ET-03) versions of the same molecule (undisclosed at this time) for both hair growth and gray hair reversal. 

In a press release from March 10, 2021, these quotes were shared about the hair programs at Eirion:

“Eirion’s pre-clinical product candidates ET-02 and ET-03, which contain the same small molecule, employ a brand-new mechanism of action which corrects an aging defect in the hair follicle stem cells that Eirion has discovered causes androgenic alopecia and hair greying. Eirion believes that ET-02 and ET-03 can either prevent the defect from occurring or reverse the defect which would result in either new hair growth in those who have lost hair or the return of hair color for those who have turned grey. 

In controlled non-clinical studies of human scalp tissue affected by androgenic alopecia, ET-02 demonstrated approximately twice the hair growth compared to a control treatment over approximately 4 months, which was statistically significant, and amounted to approximately three times the hair growth per centimeter over that which was observed in minoxidil clinical trials that were 12 months in duration. Eirion plans to launch its first clinical trial of ET-02 next year.”

More information on Eirion’s hair drug candidates from the company website:

  • Eirion utilizes a different therapeutic approach than other products for androgenic alopecia that are commercially available or in development. ET-02 and ET-03 targets a novel and compelling mechanism of action that we believe corrects a dysfunction in the hair follicle stem cell that is the cause of alopecia. 
  • To Eirion’s knowledge, ET-02 and ET-03 are the only pharmaceutical products in development for hair greying. Eirion believes hair greying is also due to a defect in the stem cells in the hair follicle.

Wow, it’s so interesting to hear about another previously unknown startup that has been doing some serious research on hair follicles and their stem cell functioning. A major positive indicator here is the $40M secured investment, we know they have some compelling data in hand and should now be able to progress their programs comfortably to human trials. Also, who doesn’t love the idea of a bonus drug which can restore your hair’s natural color? As you read earlier, a human trial for topical ET-02 is planned for 2022. We will definitely keep an eye on Eirion over the next year.

 

93 Comments

  1. Follicle Thought on March 14, 2021 at 7:07 pm

    I am genuinely interested and excited for these new companies, I hope most of you are, too. The “new mechanism” by Eirion is intriguing and I am very much looking forward to Topadur’s next study. Dr. Naef was very pleasant to interact with and said he will share the human tissue study results when available.

    Thanks to john doe for the helpful news tips.



    • Zach on March 17, 2021 at 5:29 pm

      Hey Admin, in a previous article on Hairclone i believe you stated that hairclone aims to deliver dermal papilla injections to be available this year in 2021. Has Paul Kemp stated this to you? Doctor Sara Wasserbauer has started banking follicles in the U.S but on their website it says they believe injections will be available in 2 or 3 years. Any idea on the discrepancy?



      • Zach on March 17, 2021 at 5:31 pm

        Whoops just saw your previous comment



      • Follicle Thought on March 17, 2021 at 8:07 pm

        Sure, Dr. Wasserbauer is in California and therefore will not be able to provide the treatment under the UK Specials regulations this year. Treatments are likely to be available (in the UK only) this year.



        • Zach on March 19, 2021 at 1:02 am

          Awesome thanks, lets hope travel is back on by then



  2. Devit on March 14, 2021 at 8:25 pm

    Nice to see, may be more and more options / treatments would available in long future.
    Looking forward for an update from companies, who can start their phase 3 trail.
    Thank you Admin for this new article.



  3. Anthony Salazar on March 14, 2021 at 8:31 pm

    Word up.



  4. Sufi on March 14, 2021 at 8:34 pm

    Thank you Admin for the constant updates! Have you received any news on Stemson on whether they started their pre-clinicals on pigs yet? Thanks



  5. nobody on March 15, 2021 at 4:09 am

    Hello dear admin!
    Great news 🙂 I hope as much as. everyone else that something will happen in the near future. Thank you!



  6. JLF on March 15, 2021 at 8:13 am

    Very interesting stuff. Too bad though that TOP-M119 is being compared to 2% minoxidil in stead of 5%. https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5f5f5e3ee3d303fa4199067a/5f91662917272f006cb9b9ba_Presentation_Bio%20Europe%202020.pdf



  7. MRKA on March 15, 2021 at 8:34 am

    Certainly not excited at all. I may get excited after a phase 2 trial if results are good. But its definetly a good sign that more and more companies trying to develop a hair loss treatment. A higher chance that one day we have a breakthrough that everybody is waiting for.



    • Yoda on March 15, 2021 at 3:09 pm

      I think Admin summed it up with the word “interesting”. I agree with MRKA, so many companies announcing they are in the game but the timeline to market is so far out it’s hard for me to get too excited, if they even make it to the finish line. Appreciate admin sharing real news with us, good to have more players in the game…someday, something, somehow, someway!



      • Tshitou on March 16, 2021 at 12:11 am

        Yoda, I have to say, I really admire you still have so strong will that hair lose cure will arrive at sometime. If I were you, I would have already lost any confidence about it.



        • Yoda on March 16, 2021 at 2:55 pm

          Tshitou, I have hope because Yoda was born and started loosing hair before there were any real medical treatments available. It’s been far too long since min/fin came on the scene but I’m thankful that they did. Having hope is a good thing, as long as it’s realistic and not blind. Hence why Yoda get’s on his soapbox when some of my brothers (and sisters) put all their hopes in treatments (or potential cures) that are in the very early, pre-clinical stage. At this point my hope is for an evolutionary treatment that is an improvement over what’s currently available. These are the things that are also in clinical stages 2 or 3 for regulatory approval. The rest is just interesting stuff to Yoda.



  8. Woofy97 on March 16, 2021 at 1:57 pm

    It kinda makes me mad when I see these transplant doctors partner with hairclone (hopefully just the freezing of follicles and not the bs injection treatment they’re working) when they should really be partnering with tsuji or stemsontx or at least showing support



  9. New-uaer on March 16, 2021 at 4:05 pm

    Hello I am new to this site, I 2anted to check on children hair loss is it normal for 10 years old boy to loose hair? Is it reversible?

    I and my wife both have hair loss issue.



  10. Shu on March 16, 2021 at 6:27 pm

    Hello new-uaer, I’m not a specialist but I think that a ten years old kid is way too young to experience male pattern baldness. I think the hair loss might probably be the side effect of something else, for example a thyroid problem?



  11. Paul on March 16, 2021 at 7:13 pm

    What does everyone think about HairClone?

    I e-mailed Bessam Farjo, who was kind enough to respond. He said that he “anticipates” their injection treatments “perhaps by the end of the year”.

    My understanding is that HairClone is designed to rejuvenate existing hairs, not regenerating old / new ones.

    What sort of difference / improvement are we hoping for with this? Do we think it will make a noticeable difference? Better than Minoxidil?

    I know, of course, that there’s no guarantee it will work. Hell, there’s no guarantee it will even get released. But some informed speculation can be fun, and there’s no harm in discussing future treatments. After all, that’s why we’re all here, isn’t it?



    • Follicle Thought on March 16, 2021 at 8:00 pm

      BTW Paul, I heard from Paul Kemp last week who said yes he still anticipates injections to begin this year.



      • Matt on March 19, 2021 at 5:20 am

        Hi Admin, will be be posting an update/article regarding Hairclone?
        I know ladt year they were hoping to begin treatments by Q2 but has that now been extended?

        Thanks in advance



        • Follicle Thought on March 19, 2021 at 7:15 pm

          Hi Matt, I don’t have an article lined up at the moment, but I will when there is some big news for them. Recently, Paul told me they are opening up banking partnerships in North America and are still planning to offer expanded cells in UK this year. That’s all for now.



  12. Tom on March 16, 2021 at 7:46 pm

    Blocking Prolactin at the receptor might be all we have to do. We will find out soon



    • Algal on March 26, 2021 at 6:16 pm

      Absolutely agreed. A very close friend of mine is 55 and ALL males in his family are nw7 with aggressive aga. Well, this guy is nw0 and has been diagnosed tyrod benign cancer that to my knowledge has to do with prolactin. I am convinced prolactin is highly involved.



  13. Kapil on March 17, 2021 at 8:32 am

    @admin have you heard anything from UW Madison and Samumed? It seems to be Mane biotech has funding issues they are running the trials £80000 plus 12000 Govt support it make sense their CTO working for other co anyway it’s my assessment could be wrong I am still hoping something positive
    Thanks



    • Follicle Thought on March 17, 2021 at 8:09 pm

      Nothing from Madison or Samumed lately, I did reach out to Samumed recently and they said their trial results need to be evaluated over a long period of time before they can make a projection about release in Turkey or US. Yes, it’s true Sam Jellard left Mane Biotech, I do not know the reason for this.



    • D1 on March 19, 2021 at 6:57 pm

      @Follicle Thought is it normal for samumed to be slow to release results?

      Also what happened to that Californian company?



      • Follicle Thought on March 19, 2021 at 7:18 pm

        Yes, I think so D1 because it was such a large trial. They probably want to hand the results right over the authorities and would not release their own announcement at the same time. Also, I just want to be clear, if there is no update on the website, then there is no update about any particular company. There is still a chance that they could make news at some point, but until then please have patience.



      • MRKA on March 20, 2021 at 3:34 am

        D1…are you referring to the mysterious company that developed a stem cell topical product?
        I understand that its not their main line of business..



  14. Ralph on March 17, 2021 at 7:10 pm

    Admin, am I nuts or was there another article from a few days about about an additional upcoming topical drug? (I think the company had one OTC product and one prescription product being developed?) Was that removed or am I just a space cadet? Thanks.



    • Follicle Thought on March 17, 2021 at 8:10 pm

      Are you talking about CarthroniX? You’d just need to scroll down the main page to see it.



  15. Ahmed bekeer on March 18, 2021 at 5:27 am

    The most wonderful research for understanding hair disorders https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2021-03/tmad-tbt031621.php



  16. abc on March 18, 2021 at 1:04 pm

    @Follicle Thought, with regards to TOP-M119, as it seeks to increase cGMP levels and blood circulation, would people susceptible to Minoxidil side effects such as heart palpitations and light headedness also be likely to have similar side effects.

    And would ET-02 and ET-03 also affect hair elsewhere other than the scalp. Mainly regarding the oral version (ET-03) could it potentially reverse facial hair greying? And how would it affect hair growth elsewhere such as body hair?

    I understand you probably do not have the answers to these questions right now, but it would be great if you could ask some of these questions in a future followup?
    Thanks.



  17. Johny on March 18, 2021 at 5:59 pm

    Admin, do you have any update on Hope Medicine anti prolactin?



    • Follicle Thought on March 19, 2021 at 7:14 pm

      Not yet Johny, thanks for reading.



  18. Franz on March 20, 2021 at 2:43 am

    Hey Admin, I know most of the interest is on androgenic alopecia but if anything appears to be exciting or hopeful for scarring alopecia can you write on it?



  19. P on March 20, 2021 at 7:30 am

    @Follcile Thought, hey admin do you have any further update on TissUse/J.Hewitt and their Smart Hair Transplant work? Just a follow-up question to that do you have an anticipated go to market date for that as well?
    Thanks for all your work!



    • Follicle Thought on March 20, 2021 at 6:23 pm

      There’s no update at the moment but development is still in progress, if anything official happens you’ll all the be first to know. There’s no way to estimate a market date for it in Japan at the moment.



  20. MRKA on March 23, 2021 at 3:22 pm

    Hello Admin…I obtained the study from last year re. microneedling and upregulation of the sulfotransferase enzyme. It appears that microneedling is the painful alternative to AB-103.

    I am now able to obtain oral minoxidil. I am also keen to use TH16 or TH18. Since I am stabbing my scalp I should be a topical minox responder.
    In other words…oral minox plus TH16 or TH18. Thats now the question….
    Yoda…whats your opinion?
    Thanks



    • Yoda on March 23, 2021 at 4:02 pm

      Hey MRKA, not exactly sure of the question. If it relates to TH16 and TH18 Yoda has no opinion on these, can’t even remember specifically what they are. Micro needling can’t hurt (except the pain!) but the question is how much it helps. Yoda doesn’t feel needling brings that much to the table based on my own personal experience. Yoda is a big fan of Dr. supervised oral minoxidil, low dose (2.5-.5 mg) for people with normal BP. Hope that helps!



      • MRKA on March 24, 2021 at 3:16 am

        Thanks Yoda..

        Basically I am wondering if topical minox in addition to oral minox is a waste.

        I expect to be a topical minox responder due to needling (Study from last year).

        For you the benefits of needling are probably marginal as you are good topical minox responder anyway.

        First time ever that I will use it..



        • Yoda on March 24, 2021 at 6:41 pm

          Ahhh, ok MRKA. To be clear I was a good topical Minox responder but became less so with age, even at higher concentrations (10%-15%). That’s where oral minox really helped me, however I still use topical. Yoda is a big believer in the “kitchen sink” approach, throw everything you can at it, within reason. No reason to stop topical minox and mine has other goodies mixed in it. Hence why I micro needle and still use a 1st generation Hairmax laser comb…does no harm and maybe some good!



          • EJ on April 16, 2021 at 10:55 pm

            Hey Yoda, hope all is well! A while back you briefly shared where you get your higher concentrated oral minox with other ingredients mixed in from, do you mind sharing again where I’d be able to get some with the ok from admin?



  21. Follicle Thought on March 23, 2021 at 7:29 pm

    Sorry JJ, your posts are not deleted because you’re not a “blind optimist” your posts are deleted because you broadcast your negativity to the other readers who don’t need it, and, you think you know what you’re talking about while I don’t agree that’s the case. If there’s nothing of value on this site for you, why come here? Take care.



    • Yoda on March 24, 2021 at 6:46 pm

      Yoda saw that coming like a freight train! I was going to interject but kept my big mouth (or fingers) shut out of respect to the admin.



  22. Nick123 on March 24, 2021 at 9:43 am

    @FollicleThought

    I believe ET-02 (oral) and ET-03 (topical) active molecule is either TM5275 or TM5441, a Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) inhibitor. Inhibiting PAI-1 seems to be how they are “fixing” stem cells. I believe TM5441 was a bit more potent so I assume that’s what they will end up using

    TM5441 is also being trialed by renascience https://www.renascience.co.jp/en/pipline.html RS5614.

    Source:
    https://www.tohoku.ac.jp/en/press/amish_live_longer_and_healthier.html
    https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0133786



    • Follicle Thought on March 24, 2021 at 6:20 pm

      Nick thanks for sharing! The multiple links triggered the comment to be left in moderation before it could be approved and posted.

      I wonder how 2 companies could be using the same molecule. Do you happen to know who invented and owns the rights to TM5275 or TM5441?



      • thinningontop on March 25, 2021 at 6:09 pm

        It’s TM5441 and TM5484 in Eirions AGA patent. Renascience do research with Tohoku uni and sent the inhibitor to Southwestern to be tested on their pai-1 stab transgenic mice and it was the first pai-1 inhibitor to regrow hair in these mice. Off the back of the mice regrowing hair Renascience licensed a formulation to Eirion therapeutics.



  23. HairlossCuresPls on March 26, 2021 at 11:44 am

    Hi Admin, do you have any update on Stemson Therapeutics and if they will be starting clinical trails this year?



  24. Shayak on March 28, 2021 at 12:15 pm

    Great article admin,thank you for all your efforts.



    • Follicle Thought on March 28, 2021 at 1:08 pm

      Thank you Shayak, I appreciate it.

      Also, for those checking in, I should have a new article up around Wednesday.



    • EJ on April 16, 2021 at 10:56 pm

      Hey Yoda, hope all is well! A while back you briefly shared where you get your higher concentrated oral minox with other ingredients mixed in from, do you mind sharing again where I’d be able to get some with the ok from admin?



  25. D1 on March 29, 2021 at 2:27 pm

    Is it a big one? @FollicleThought



  26. Paul on March 30, 2021 at 8:39 am

    Anyone tried Nanoxidil?



  27. Nick123 on March 31, 2021 at 8:50 am

    Hey Admin,

    Just wanted to let you know that it looks like Kintor have started Phase 1 trials for their PROTAC AR degrader GT20029 in China according to their pipeline page: https://en.kintor.com.cn/intro/30.html

    I feel like there’s definitely some space for Kintor to be listed on your ultimate guide.



    • Follicle Thought on March 31, 2021 at 11:43 am

      Thanks for the note Nick!



  28. Jade on December 28, 2021 at 4:25 pm

    Hi Follicle Thought,

    In your opinion are we close to something that would be able to reverse gray hairs without side effects?

    If yes what is your estimation for when such a treatment would be launched?



    • Follicle Thought on December 28, 2021 at 5:26 pm

      Right now Eirion is the only drug in a company pipeline. There’s years to go for sure. 2022 will be an important year to begin trials.



  29. Andy on April 13, 2022 at 5:17 pm

    Any news on Eirion starting there clinical trials? I came across a patent that they have already done trials on humans with Pai-1 inhibitor hopefully they start phase 1 this year



    • Follicle Thought on April 13, 2022 at 6:38 pm

      Andy, I haven’t heard anything from them in a long time. I have tried a few times.



      • Raj on June 21, 2022 at 4:23 pm

        In your experiences does that mean they’re just not doing it anymore?



        • Follicle Thought on June 21, 2022 at 5:49 pm

          No it only means they have no news to share. I believe they are working internally on their candidate drugs.



          • Raj on June 21, 2022 at 6:26 pm

            That’s awesome to hear. I’m 35 I’ve had premature grey since the age of 27 and it really does suck especially when you otherwise look young. Dying it doesn’t look great and only lasts a little but until it’s noticeable again.

            If we can get a treatment that works on the same level that, for example, a hair transplant does for restoration, I’d be a happy camper.

            It’s nice to see one company FINALLY at least looking at it.

            Do you think more might follow?



  30. Jorge on June 22, 2022 at 4:39 am

    I take advantage of this update to ask you about the product that Protransit wants to bring to the market to treat gray hair next year.

    I don’t understand how they don’t need to pass the clinical trials, it means that the treatment will not be effective?
    Instead they have another one for baldness if they need to pass the tests.

    FT do you think it can be useful? I already heard about catalase a long time ago but there has been nothing effective

    By the way Raj I’m also 35 and I started with gray hair at 20, and I don’t like them either.

    If you don’t understand something written, I’m sorry, English is not my main language.



    • Follicle Thought on June 22, 2022 at 9:14 am

      Jorge, it would be classified as a cosmeceutical. I don’t have high expectations for it currently, I’d want to see what a pilot study was able to do.



    • Raj on June 22, 2022 at 2:15 pm

      Jorge, yes it does suck. It’s not the end of the world but there’s a no excuse that there is no treatment for this condition. Nobody should be forced to have grey hair in their 20’s.

      It is very encouraging that multiple companies are at least beginning work on this.

      Maybe it’s a sign that work in this area will increase much like it currently is for hair growth.

      If we can get something that work at least as well as current treatments for hair loss, that would be amazing.



  31. Jorge on June 23, 2022 at 3:30 pm

    Hi Raj.

    Though I’ve been with them for 15 years, it’s still not crazy, except for the temples that are noticeable.

    Gray hair has always caused me a complex, and to think that at around 45 I’ll have all of my hair gray makes me a little sad because the rest of my body makes me look young. But I suppose the same will happen to people who lose hair very young, although they do have an alternative.

    I am pessimistic about treatments, there are many more companies that are dedicated to hair loss and they have not yet found an effective cure, so for this it is even more difficult. What bothers me is when companies themselves advertise products that they know are ineffective just to make money or say they have found the cure for more funding and then are never heard from again. In the last 10 years I have seen it many times.



    • Raj on June 24, 2022 at 12:04 pm

      I understand the frustration, Jorge.

      On the bright side, two years ago we hade NO companies working on this. No we have two and one of them– Eirion– at least seems to be pretty serious.

      I can only imagine we will get more in the near future. Maybe reversing the greys will end up being easier than getting hair to grow.. who knows. But I agree it should be just as important because at the end of the day, going grey early makes people feel the same way as losing your hair. And the solutions available are no better than wearing a wig.

      While my grey isn’t terrible yet, I’m looking into doing a skin fade buzz haircut. I think I can pull it off and it will make the greys almost unnoticeable. And it looks good especially with a beard.

      Maybe that’s something you can consider.



  32. Andy on August 10, 2022 at 2:21 pm

    https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMicm2119953 so repigmentation is possible it’s just a matter of how to do it safely side effects free



    • Raj on August 10, 2022 at 9:16 pm

      I so wish companies should get behind this. The market is an endless goldmine.

      So many people out there suffering from premature grey hair that would have such an improvement of life.

      How can we start getting companies behind looking for a treatment for this issue?

      The evidence is there that repigmentation is possible.



      • Follicle Thought on August 10, 2022 at 10:26 pm

        Raj, they are working on it my friend. I think my next article will detail some of the research. I’m debating if I will focus on that topic.



  33. Raj on August 10, 2022 at 10:38 pm

    Follicle Thought, thanks you friend. Whoever you’re in contact with, please convey to them that there are people who’s lives would greatly improve with a permanent greying treatment. Thank you for including this on your blog… it needs to be in the mainstream.

    Anything I personally can do to help get the ball rolling in this direction?



    • Follicle Thought on August 12, 2022 at 10:30 pm

      Raj, sorry I forgot to respond to this. I have relayed your interest and message to at least one researcher.

      As far as getting the ball rolling, do you happen to know anyone who can fund a study or invest into a treatment for gray hair reverse? Besides that, in this rare case I offer the idea of contacting Eirion Therapeutics. They have not responded to me in a long time. Typically I don’t recommend that lay people pile up emails to these companies, but Eirion has been out of the spotlight for a while, perhaps they’d respond.



      • Raj on August 13, 2022 at 9:02 pm

        Thanks for the response Follicle Thought.

        Maybe I’ll give Eirion a try. It’s too bad they’re not responding.. do you think it means their approach is not viable?

        I will keep in mind what you said about funding.

        Perhaps lobbying dermatological clinics and companies in my area could be helpful.



        • Follicle Thought on August 14, 2022 at 9:44 am

          Companies sometimes don’t respond for a number of reasons.



  34. Andy on August 11, 2022 at 12:57 pm

    From an article about nilotinib hair repigmentation. Hopefully the investigations goes well and they find a drug that is safe and effective.

    Westerweel said nilotinib may have caused changes to the man’s hair as a result of simulating melanocytes, which are the cells that produce the melanin pigment. He said the drug is currently being investigated by dermatological research groups for this purpose.



    • Raj on August 11, 2022 at 2:35 pm

      There’s so many examples of repigmentation of these sort of drugs.

      Isn’t this the same way the breakthrough treatment for alopecia areata came to be?

      They observed it as a side effect I believe and piggy backed off that observation.

      Out of curiosity, has there been examples of people who suffer from hair loss regrowing their hair as a side effect of a drug treatment for something else?



  35. Andy on September 11, 2022 at 1:20 pm

    https://www.happi.com/contents/view_breaking-news/2022-09-09/peptides-for-increasing-melanin-in-melanocytes/

    This is very recent although, i can’t find any info about this not even the patent file. Sounds promising for a cosmetic though.



    • Follicle Thought on September 11, 2022 at 5:53 pm

      Cool, thanks Andy.



  36. Andy on September 13, 2022 at 9:22 pm

    https://www.patentguru.com/search?q=Poliosis

    This patent claims to treat hair greying, poliosis and vitiligo. I have no idea if there is a company following up on this or if it is just at a research stage.



  37. Jorge on September 15, 2022 at 2:33 pm

    Andy, where do you find those things?

    I think they patent it in case in the future they will find an investor to carry out clinical trials but not to be commercialized soon. At least I think so, but hopefully one will be on the market soon.



  38. Andy on September 15, 2022 at 5:39 pm

    Jorge, just deep researching as I am desperate to find a solution and I’m trying to stay hopeful that someday soon there will be a treatment be it a cure or something that helps reverse grey hair as I have premature grey hair and hair loss and I dream of a day that I won’t have to worry about both



    • Raj on September 17, 2022 at 1:47 am

      Andy, I understand where you are coming from.

      Premature grey hair has ruined my life and taken away my confidence. Makes me feel older than my peers.

      Makes me angry that nobody takes this problem seriously.

      There are young people as young as teens that get premature greying and they are forced to accept it and have their youth robbed from them.

      It’s unacceptable that more is research and options aren’t available for this.

      Even a treatment to slow it down like Minox does for hair loss would be a godsend.



  39. Jorge on September 16, 2022 at 1:23 pm

    I understand what you’re saying Andy, but you have to try to accept yourself until a solution appears.

    As for baldness, you have options such as an implant until something better comes out.

    I also have gray hair. But I will only get my hopes up when some treatment has been shown to be effective and not dangerous.

    For example, when you put the link for nilotinib, keep in mind that they need to investigate to find out what it is that reverses gray hair of that drug and then do clinical trials that last a few years.

    In 2017 in Spain it was already proven that a cancer treatment reversed gray hair, but they couldn´t know what was causing it. It is true that in the USA there are more resources and more possibilities to investigate but I think it´s not easy.

    Although perhaps there is some laboratory that is already investigating and in a short time a cure will appear, we must have hope



  40. H on October 16, 2022 at 8:11 am

    Any news about Eirion starting clinical trials?



    • Follicle Thought on October 16, 2022 at 12:22 pm

      Unfortunately, not H. I have tried a few times.



  41. Andy on October 19, 2022 at 5:16 pm

    https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/eirion-therapeutics-announces-initiation-of-first-in-human-clinical-trial-evaluating-next-generation-ready-to-use-liquid-injectable-neuromodulator-ai-09-for-the-treatment-of-wrinkles-301650212.html

    Update just a few days ago from Eirion Therapeutics. Announcement of one of their other products for wrinkles starting human clinical trials phase 1/2b. They do however mention the hair growth and greying product ET02 is hoping to file for IND early next year and start clinical trials mid 2023 so fingers crossed this goes to plan and hopefully no delays. Most likely 5 years away from market but considering this is the only serious company focused on grey hair reversal then I hope all goes well for them.



    • Raj on October 19, 2022 at 8:57 pm

      Andy, I saw that as well.

      Yes fingers crossed. I hope it would be more like 3-4 years but we’ll see.

      They have an agreement with a Chinese company for distribution so maybe it becomes available earlier in China?

      I would be willing to travel there for the treatment.

      Overall, this is good news- they’re still looking to bring this to market which means they believe it will work



    • Follicle Thought on October 20, 2022 at 11:49 am

      Thanks Andy, I did see that also and was planning to add to the updates page.



  42. felix on October 19, 2022 at 8:58 pm

    For those of you fellow grey-hair sufferers who don’t know, here is another company that plans to work on a compound for skin & grey hair:
    https://www.cutaneon.com/



    • Raj on October 19, 2022 at 9:11 pm

      Thank you Felix. I’m so ready for a project like this.

      Sucks so bad losing your years in your 30’s having to deal with lack of confidence due to grey hair.

      Travesty there isn’t a product yet



  43. H on October 20, 2022 at 12:17 am

    I think eirion still lacks sufficient financial support, so the progress will be slow, not as efficient as pioneering, ET-02 only mentioned clinical trials related to hair loss, and did not mention gray hair, I think it still lacks financial support



  44. H on October 20, 2022 at 12:25 am

    I hope to raise funds as soon as possible to start the clinical trial of gray hair. The psychological impact caused by gray hair is also very serious…



    • Raj on October 20, 2022 at 9:16 am

      Problem is it’s not taken seriously and is just brushed aside with comments like “just dye it”….: as if that’s a real solution



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