2024-02-24 03:17:24
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 news ‘Medical Life Science’ on the 23rd (local time), a research team led by Professor Jaume Hamengual of Food and Nutrition at the University of Illinois College of Agriculture conducted a study that concluded, “Finasteride lowers blood cholesterol levels and inhibits the progression of arteriosclerosis.” 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 androgen 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 an average of 30 mg/dl lower total blood cholesterol levels than non-users. Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels, the ‘bad’ cholesterol, were also low.
However, the research team stated, “It is not possible to confirm what dose and for how long finasteride users used because there is no data.”
To confirm this result, the research team conducted an experiment directly on mice.
The research team first administered different doses of finasteride to male mice that had been genetically modified to increase the risk of arteriosclerosis. In addition, 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 other lipid levels and looked for the appearance of atherosclerotic plaques.
The study found that only mice administered the highest dose of finasteride had lower blood cholesterol and atherosclerotic plaque levels.
Arteriosclerosis, which occurs when cholesterol accumulates 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 arteriosclerosis.
However, the research team explained, “Because the metabolism of finasteride in the body is different in mice and humans, the same effect may not be seen in humans when administered at the maximum dose.”
In addition, as a result of RNA sequencing of mice administered finasteride, it was found that the liver inflammatory pathway was suppressed and the bile acid metabolism, oxidative phosphorylation (OP), and cholesterol pathways that help decompose fat were activated.
In the future, the research team plans to track 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)
1708745369
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