Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) announced on the 19th that its research team has developed, for the first time in the world, a new peptide that promotes hair growth without side effects. Observers say this opens the way for the development of a next-generation hair loss treatment that can be safely used by both men and women.

The research team led by Professors Moon Je-il and Kim So-yeon of the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at DGIST and Professor Lee Chang-hoon of the Department of New Biology, in collaboration with the team led by Professor Sung Young-kwan and Dr. Kwak Mi-hee at Kyungpook National University School of Medicine, used computer modeling to develop a new peptide, “MLPH,” that promotes hair growth.

Currently, the only hair loss treatments approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are minoxidil and finasteride. However, topical minoxidil can cause skin irritation. Oral finasteride, which works by regulating male hormones, can cause sexual dysfunction in men and has a critical drawback in that its use is restricted for women of childbearing age.

To overcome these limitations, the research team used erythropoietin (EPO), a hematopoietic hormone that produces red blood cells, instead of sex hormones. Academic circles have previously reported that EPO promotes hair growth by binding to receptors on hair follicle cells. However, when EPO is administered systemically for hair loss treatment, it can cause serious side effects such as excessive red blood cell production, making it impossible to use as an actual pharmaceutical product.

The research team introduced a structure-based design technique using advanced computer modeling to overcome hematopoietic hormone–related side effects. From the EPO protein structure, they excluded the portion that causes side effects and precisely extracted only the key region that binds to hair follicle cell receptors and induces hair growth, independently designing a new peptide called “MLPH.”

The team has completed a patent application for MLPH and is seeking corporate partners for commercialization of the technology. If clinical trials and development proceed, the actual drug is expected to be released on the market in topical form in two to three years. Professor Moon Je-il of the DGIST Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences said, “The MLPH peptide developed in this study is a safe, mechanism-based therapeutic agent that can overcome the side effects of existing drugs,” adding, “It is expected to create groundbreaking economic value in the global hair loss market, which is worth KRW 58 trillion.”

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