Copper peptides(GHK-Cu)are a powerful hair growth promoter with minimal side effects when compared with minoxidil and finasteride;however,challenges in delivering GHK-Cu topically limits their non-invasive application...Copper peptides(GHK-Cu)are a powerful hair growth promoter with minimal side effects when compared with minoxidil and finasteride;however,challenges in delivering GHK-Cu topically limits their non-invasive applications.Using theoretical calculations and pseudo-ternary phase diagrams,we designed and constructed a thermodynamically stable ionic liquid(IL)-based microemulsion(IL-M),which integrates the high drug solubility of ILs and high skin permeability of microemulsions,thus improving the local delivery of copper peptides by approximately three-fold while retaining their biological function.Experiments in mice validated the effectiveness of our proposed IL-M system.Furthermore,the exact effects of the IL-M system on the expression of growth factors,such as vascular endothelial growth factor,were revealed,and it was found that microemulsion increased the activation of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway,which includes factors involved in hair growth regulation.Overall,the safe and non-invasive IL microemulsion system developed in this study has great potential for the clinical treatment of hair loss.展开更多
基金Support was received from the National Natural Science Foundation of China(21703218)Shenzhen Science and Technology Innovation Commission(JCYJ20180507183907224,KQTD20170809110344233)+1 种基金Shenzhen Economic,Trade and Information Commission through the Graphene Manufacturing Innovation Center(201901161514)The Guangdong Provincial Covid-19 Pandemic Control Research Fund(2020KZDZX1220).
文摘Copper peptides(GHK-Cu)are a powerful hair growth promoter with minimal side effects when compared with minoxidil and finasteride;however,challenges in delivering GHK-Cu topically limits their non-invasive applications.Using theoretical calculations and pseudo-ternary phase diagrams,we designed and constructed a thermodynamically stable ionic liquid(IL)-based microemulsion(IL-M),which integrates the high drug solubility of ILs and high skin permeability of microemulsions,thus improving the local delivery of copper peptides by approximately three-fold while retaining their biological function.Experiments in mice validated the effectiveness of our proposed IL-M system.Furthermore,the exact effects of the IL-M system on the expression of growth factors,such as vascular endothelial growth factor,were revealed,and it was found that microemulsion increased the activation of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway,which includes factors involved in hair growth regulation.Overall,the safe and non-invasive IL microemulsion system developed in this study has great potential for the clinical treatment of hair loss.
