Exploring the impact of ovariectomy on hair growth: can ovariectomized mouse serve as a model for investigating female pattern hair loss in humans?

Abstract

Female pattern hair loss (FPHL), a type of hair disease common in pre- and postmenopausal women, is characterized by thinning of hair to O-type, mainly at the crown. Although a mouse model of this disease has recently been established, its details are still unknown, and thus, warrants further analysis. In this study, 3week-old and 7- to 8week-old C57BL/6 female mice were divided into two groups: one group underwent ovariectomy (OVX), while the other underwent sham surgery. In the 3week-old mice, the dorsal skin was collected at seven weeks of age, while in the 7- to 8week-old mice, it was collected at 12 and 24weeks of age. In the former group, both the pore size of the hair follicles (HFs) and diameter of the hair shaft of telogen HFs decreased upon OVX; while in the latter group, these factors increased significantly. Notably, the thickness of the dermis and subcutis increased significantly in the OVX group. It needs to be further elucidated whether OVX mouse could serve as an ideal mouse model for FPHL, but our results upon evaluation of skin thickness indicate that it could be used to establish a novel treatment for non-hair-related diseases, such as post-menopause-related skin condition.