Minoxidil

Minoxidil is a medication used topically to promote hair growth and orally to treat severe high blood pressure. Its hair-growth effect was discovered during its use as an oral antihypertensive.

Potassium channel: A membrane protein that selectively allows potassium ions to cross a cell membrane. Minoxidil’s vascular effects involve opening ATP-sensitive potassium channels in smooth muscle.
Androgenetic alopecia: A patterned form of hair loss influenced by genetic susceptibility and androgen signaling. Topical minoxidil is a standard treatment for this common form of hair loss.
Hypertrichosis: Excessive hair growth in areas of the body where hair is not desired. Topical transfer or systemic absorption can cause unwanted hair growth beyond the scalp.
Upjohn Company: An American pharmaceutical company founded in 1886 and later incorporated into Pharmacia. Upjohn developed minoxidil as an antihypertensive before its hair-growth effect reshaped its uses.
ATP-sensitive potassium channel: A potassium channel regulated by intracellular ATP and ADP that links cellular metabolism to membrane excitability. Opening these channels helps explain minoxidil’s relaxation of vascular smooth muscle.
Topical medication: A medication applied to a body surface, often to act locally. Hair-growth treatment applies minoxidil to the scalp rather than relying on its oral blood-pressure effects.
Pericardial effusion: An abnormal accumulation of fluid in the sac surrounding the heart. Rare serious cardiac complications have been associated with oral minoxidil.
Loniten: A brand name for oral minoxidil used to treat severe hypertension. The oral drug’s clinical use exposed hair growth as a notable adverse effect.
Vasodilation: The widening of blood vessels through relaxation of their smooth muscle. Oral minoxidil lowers blood pressure by producing strong arteriolar vasodilation.
Oral minoxidil: Minoxidil taken by mouth, principally as a potent vasodilator for severe hypertension. This route treats hypertension and is also prescribed off-label at low doses for hair loss.

Linked from 11 pages