LOS ANGELES, Feb. 17 (UPI) -- U.S. researchers studying how stress affects gastrointestinal function say they may have found a chemical compound that induces hair growth.
Researchers from UCLA and the Veterans Administration doing stress studies with mice say the chemical was found to block a stress-related hormone associated with hair loss, ScienceDaily.com reported Thursday.
"Our findings show that a short-duration treatment with this compound causes an astounding long-term hair regrowth in chronically stressed mutant mice," said Million Mulugeta, a professor at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. "This could open new venues to treat hair loss in humans through the modulation of the stress hormone receptors, particularly hair loss related to chronic stress and aging."
The effect has been seen only in mice so far, and it remains to be seen if the same result could be obtained in humans, the researchers said.
However, they said, it is known that the stress-hormone in question is found in human skin.
