Melatonin and the Human Hair Follicle.

Background: Melatonin, a pleiotropic hormone, affects the physiological processes including that of the hair follicle. We seek to identify the scientific evidence to support the potential benefits of melatonin in human hair growth.

Objective: To summarize the evidence on the association between melatonin and hair health, denoted by hair growth.

Erythromelalgia successfully treated with low-dose gabapentin in a pediatric patient.

Primary erythromelalgia, while uncommon, may significantly decrease the quality of life of those affected. While many patients with erythromelalgia require systemic therapy, there is no standard of care for this condition. Herein, we report a 7-year-old girl who experienced resolution of erythromelalgia symptoms with no adverse effects after treatment with low-dose gabapentin.

Systemic Medications Associated With Hair Texture Changes.

Background: In addition to hair loss, alterations in hair texture can be a worrisome side effect of certain medications yet are seldom reported and poorly characterized.

Objective: To systematically analyze the scientific literature to characterize medication-associated hair texture changes.

Methods: Relevant primary literature within PubMed and Cochrane was reviewed from 1985-2021 including 31 articles (1 randomized controlled trial with texture changes incidentally noted, 6 cohort, 1 cross-sectional, 23 case studies), comprising 2594 patients.

Coconut, Castor, and Argan Oil for Hair in Skin of Color Patients: A Systematic Review.

Coconut, castor, and argan oils are popular commercial hair oils culturally rooted in current and historical Indian and African heritages. Dermatologists treating hair and scalp conditions often face challenging patient questions of whether over-the-counter hair oils should be used. This is particularly challenging given the deeply rooted cultural practices of some skin of color patients.

Experimental population modification of the malaria vector mosquito, Anopheles stephensi.

Small laboratory cage trials of non-drive and gene-drive strains of the Asian malaria vector mosquito, Anopheles stephensi, were used to investigate release ratios and other strain properties for their impact on transgene spread during simulated population modification. We evaluated the effects of transgenes on survival, male contributions to next-generation populations, female reproductive success and the impact of accumulation of gene drive-resistant genomic target sites resulting from nonhomologous end-joining (NHEJ) mutagenesis during Cas9, guide RNA-mediated cleavage. Experiments with a non-drive, autosomally-linked malaria-resistance gene cassette showed 'full introduction' (100% of the insects have at least one copy of the transgene) within 8 weeks (≤ 3 generations) following weekly releases of 10:1 transgenic:wild-type males in an overlapping generation trial design.

nanos-Driven expression of piggyBac transposase induces mobilization of a synthetic autonomous transposon in the malaria vector mosquito, Anopheles stephensi.

Transposons are a class of selfish DNA elements that can mobilize within a genome. If mobilization is accompanied by an increase in copy number (replicative transposition), the transposon may sweep through a population until it is fixed in all of its interbreeding members. This introgression has been proposed as the basis for drive systems to move genes with desirable phenotypes into target species.