PubMed: Green tea increases growth of scalp hair cells......

[bornthisway]

http://regrowth.com/hairloss-forums/vie ... =1&t=19130

Above is a thread about ECGC topical... as you can see even the Teavigo from NSI failed Antoitoine but he had results with another brand. So... making a useful green tea topical is possible but not as seemingly straight forward.

 

[hairsucks]

This might sound strange but when I drink 6-8 cups of green Tea throughout the day my ejaculate volume is dramatically reduced and sometimes I've had a very slight dull ache in my bollocks a bit like when you start finasteride.

This is not in my head, I've tried it a number of times and I'm not on finasteride or any other internals.

Strange eh?

 

[bornthisway]

This might sound strange but when I drink 6-8 cups of green Tea throughout the day my ejaculate volume is dramatically reduced and sometimes I've had a very slight dull ache in my bollocks a bit like when you start finasteride.

This is not in my head, I've tried it a number of times and I'm not on finasteride or any other internals.

Strange eh?

There's a study about DHT being increased a great deal by drinking green tea.

Link below:
viewtopic.php?t=31510

NOTE: The test was done with rats not humans.

The following is from the study related to this thread:

In vitro trial of EGCG in human volunteers

Ten percent EGCG in ethanol or ethanol vehicle were applied daily to two regions of the occipital scalp of three normal human volunteer for 4 successive days, and then treated areas about 1 x 1.5cm were excised. Tissue samples containing hair follicles were cautiously dissected into single hair follicles. Dermal papillae were selectively seperated under a steromicroscope and isolated into single cells for Western blot analysis.

In the present study, EGCG, the active component of
green tea, was found to cause significant human hair
follicle elongation ex vivo. EGCG at 0.1 or 1 mM
induced hair follicle elongation by 123.079.0% and
121.677.1% compared with the vehicle-treated con-
trols, respectively. Hair growth was significantly en-
hanced by EGCG at 5 mM by 181.2715.8% (po0.05).
Moreover, in the concentration range 0.01 to 0.5 mM
EGCG enhanced the proliferation of human DPCs in
vitro in a dose-dependent manner (po0.05) (Fig. 1). To
our knowledge, the present study is the first to evaluate
the effect of EGCG on hair growth using human scalp
hair follicles.

Full text: http://tinyurl.com/3y5l7e

 

[bornthisway]

This study:

EGCG promoted in vitro hair growth probably by upregulating phosphorylated Erk and Akt and by increasing Bcl-2/Bax ratio.

EGCG was observed to increase Bcl-2 and to decrease
Bax expression in cultured DPCs. EGCG treatment for
24 h increased Bcl-2 expression but decreased Bax
expression in a dose-dependent manner (po0.05)

Fig. 2. EGCG increased the phosphorylation of Erk in
cultured human DPCs. P-Erk level was significantly increased
after 1 h EGCG treatment in a dose-dependent manner. The
values shown are means7SEM of percentages vs. controls
obtained using three different batches of DPCs. *po0.05,
compared with the vehicle-treated control. P-Erk: phosphory-
lated Erk; T-Erk: total Erk.

Fig. 3. P-Akt level increase by EGCG treatment in cultured
human DPCs. EGCG treatment significantly enhanced the
phosphorylation of Akt in a dose-dependent manner. The
blotted bands are the representative of triplicate experiments.
Values shown are means7SEM of percentages vs. controls
from three different batches of DPCs. *po0.05, compared
with the vehicle-treated control.


The Additive Effects of Minoxidil and Retinol on Human Hair Growth in Vitro:

"In addition, minoxidil plus retinol more effectively elevated phosphorylated Erk, phosphorylated Akt levels, and the Bcl-2/Bax ratio than minoxidil alone in DPCs and HaCaT. We found that the significant hair shaft elongation demonstrated after minoxidil plus retinol treatment would depend on the dual kinetics associated with the activations of Erk- and Akt-dependent pathways and the prevention of apoptosis by increasing the Bcl-2/Bax ratio."

Full text link: http://tinyurl.com/2hf9mm

 

[bornthisway]

Effects of EGCG are revesed by NAC & SOD:

"The effects of EGCG are reversed by NAC and SOD, whereas those of insulin are mostly unaffected, suggesting that the former acts by a different mechanism. In most cell types, EGCG is an antioxidant.
However, in hepatoma cells, EGCG is a pro-oxidant. This is not
completely unexpected because other compounds, such as ascorbate, can act either as an antioxidant or pro-oxidant, depending on the cellular environment (47). Curcumin, a phytochemical responsible for the color of turmeric, has antioxidant activity in many different cell types but displays pro-oxidant qualities in the presence of transition metals, such as copper, which exist in the kidney and liver at relatively high concentrations"

Source: Epigallocatechin Gallate, a Constituent of Green Tea, Represses Hepatic Glucose Production - http://www.jbc.org/cgi/content/full/277/38/34933

 

[powersam]

more soluble in alcohol isnt it? i add some to my minoxidil now.

 

[bornthisway]

more soluble in alcohol isnt it? i add some to my minoxidil now.

To benefit, it was left on the scalp. Do you leave the green tea/minoxidil solution on your scalp? That's my main reasoning for all these green tea experiences being ineffective... since most of them are shampoos.. and aside that, the concentration is likely insufficient as well.

 

[powersam]

more soluble in alcohol isnt it? i add some to my minoxidil now.

To benefit, it was left on the scalp. Do you leave the green tea/minoxidil solution on your scalp? That's my main reasoning for all these green tea experiences being ineffective... since most of them are shampoos.. and aside that, the concentration is likely insufficient as well.

Well it stays on as long as the minoxidil does. Which is either all night, or sometimes just 2 hours. i'd say thats a reasonable amount of time. plus you'd expect to get better penetration with an alcohol vehicle over a water one.

 

[bornthisway]

more soluble in alcohol isnt it? i add some to my minoxidil now.

To benefit, it was left on the scalp. Do you leave the green tea/minoxidil solution on your scalp? That's my main reasoning for all these green tea experiences being ineffective... since most of them are shampoos.. and aside that, the concentration is likely insufficient as well.

Well it stays on as long as the minoxidil does. Which is either all night, or sometimes just 2 hours. i'd say thats a reasonable amount of time. plus you'd expect to get better penetration with an alcohol vehicle over a water one.

Ethanol was the vehicle in the study.

 

[bornthisway]

Hair loss and toxins? Green tea increases detoxification.

Green Tea Boosts Production Of Detox Enzymes, Rendering Cancerous Chemicals Harmless

ScienceDaily (Aug. 12, 2007) — Concentrated chemicals derived from green tea dramatically boosted production of a group of key detoxification enzymes in people with low levels of these beneficial proteins, according to researchers at Arizona Cancer Center.

These findings, published in the August issue of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, suggest that a green tea concentrate might help some people strengthen their metabolic defense against toxins capable of causing cancer.

In a study of 42 people, the concentrate -- composed of chemicals known as green tea catechins in amounts equal to that found in 8-16 cups of green tea -- boosted production of the enzymes, which belong to the glutathione S-transferase (GST) family, by as much as 80 percent in some participants.

GST enzymes are believed to be crucial to the body's defense against cancer-causing chemicals and other toxins, according to the study's lead investigator, H.-H. Sherry Chow, Ph.D., a research associate professor at the University of Arizona. They modify the cancer-causing molecules that would otherwise damage cellular DNA, thus rendering them inert.

"They actually convert known carcinogens to non-toxic chemicals, and studies have shown a correlation between deficient expression of these enzymes and increased risk of developing some cancers," Chow said.

"Expression of this enzyme varies dramatically in people due to genetic variation and environmental factors," Chow added. "Green tea catechins somehow increase gene expression of these enzymes, which can be an advantage to people with low levels to start with."

Green tea has long been of interest to researchers given studies that have shown populations in which it is often consumed, such as the Chinese and Japanese, generally have lower rates of cancer. To find out if green tea can protect against cancer, the NCI has sponsored a number of rigorous scientific studies testing capsules of the extract, Polyphenon E, that have been prepared in Japan to meet exact specifications. These pills contain epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), a catechin known for its potent antioxidant activity, and are currently being tested against a variety of cancers in clinical trials.

This study was designed to see if green tea catechin concentrate had any effect on the levels of GST enzymes in healthy individuals  research that could explain the tea's anti-cancer properties. Healthy volunteers were asked to abstain from consuming any tea or tea-related products for four weeks. At the end of this "washout period," blood was drawn and baseline GST enzyme levels were determined for each participant. Then, the volunteers were asked to take four Polyphenon E capsules, for a total of 800 milligrams of EGCG, each morning on an empty stomach for four weeks and to abstain from drinking tea or eating many cruciferous vegetables, which contain other beneficial chemicals. Another blood sample was taken after four weeks, and GST activity was determined.

Researchers found that use of Polyphenon E enhanced GST activity when data from all participants were included for analysis. But it had its most significant effect in volunteers whose baseline blood measurements showed low GST activity -- an 80 percent increase compared to baseline GST activity. Activity did not change in volunteers with medium GST expression, or in those with the highest levels, GST seemed to decrease slightly although researchers believe that decline was due to random variation.

"This is the first clinical study to show proof that chemicals in green tea can increase detoxification enzymes in humans," Chow said. "There may be other mechanism in play by which green tea may protect against cancer development, but this is a good place to start."

The NCI supported the study and researchers from NCI also participated in conducting the study.

 

[powersam]

Well it stays on as long as the minoxidil does. Which is either all night, or sometimes just 2 hours. i'd say thats a reasonable amount of time. plus you'd expect to get better penetration with an alcohol vehicle over a water one.

Ethanol was the vehicle in the study.

so in your opinion, would you say that putting green tea leaves in my minoxidil may help to some small degree at least?

 

[bornthisway]

Well it stays on as long as the minoxidil does. Which is either all night, or sometimes just 2 hours. i'd say thats a reasonable amount of time. plus you'd expect to get better penetration with an alcohol vehicle over a water one.

Ethanol was the vehicle in the study.

so in your opinion, would you say that putting green tea leaves in my minoxidil may help to some small degree at least?

Since minoxidil and ECGC work along the same pathways for hair growth, combined they should still both promote hair growth (hopefully more so). Adding green tea to your minoxidil can't hurt, though if you aren't getting the same ECGC concentration from the study (10%) then I wouldn't bother with it personally.