An overseas study showed that finasteride (product name: Propecia, Proscar), a treatment for hair loss and benign prostatic hyperplasia, is effective in treating hyperlipidemia.
According to the medical news portal ‘Medical Life Science’ on the 23rd (local time), a research team led by Professor Jaume Hamengual of the Department of Food and Nutrition at the College of Agriculture of the University of Illinois conducted a study that concluded: “Finasteride lowers blood cholesterol levels and inhibits the progression of atherosclerosis.” The results were announced.
Finasteride is a 5-alpha reductase inhibitor (5-ARI) that inhibits the conversion of the male hormone testosterone to dihydrotestosterone, an androgenic metabolite found in prostate and hair follicle tissues. Simply put, it is a drug that blocks proteins in the hair follicles and prostate that activate testosterone.
The research team analyzed data from 4,800 participants in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHNES) from 2009 to 2016, including 150 who were taking finasteride.
As a result, finasteride users had on average total blood cholesterol levels 30 mg/dl lower than non-users. Levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, the “bad” cholesterol, were also low.
However, the research team said: “It is not possible to confirm what dose and for how long finasteride users used as there is no data.”
To confirm this result, the research team conducted an experiment directly on mice.
The research team first administered several doses of finasteride to male mice that had been genetically modified to increase the risk of atherosclerosis. Additionally, they were fed a high-fat, high-cholesterol diet for 12 weeks.
After 12 weeks, the research team measured the mice’s blood cholesterol and levels of other lipids and looked for the appearance of atherosclerotic plaques.
The study found that only mice given the highest dose of finasteride had lower levels of blood cholesterol and atherosclerotic plaque.
Atherosclerosis, which occurs when cholesterol builds up in the arteries, is much more common in men than in pre-menopausal women. Therefore, scientists have long suspected that the male hormone testosterone plays an important role in atherosclerosis.
However, the research team explained: “Since the metabolism of finasteride in the body is different in mice and humans, the same effect may not be observed in humans when administered at the maximum dose.”
Furthermore, as a result of RNA sequencing of mice administered finasteride, it was found that the inflammatory pathway of the liver was suppressed and bile acid metabolism, oxidative phosphorylation (OP) and cholesterol pathways that help break down fat.
In the future, the research team plans to monitor the blood cholesterol levels of finasteride users or confirm the effectiveness of finasteride through clinical trials.
Meanwhile, the results of this study were published in the latest issue of the Journal of Lipid Research, an academic journal of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB).
Ha Soo-young (ha.suyoung@joongang.co.kr)
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