For decades, mainstream medicine has promoted the absurd idea that dihydrotestosterone (DHT) is the primary driver of male pattern baldness. This has led to a multi-billion dollar industry of anti-androgenic drugs (finasteride, dutasteride) that come with devastating side effects: sexual dysfunction, depression, and even persistent post-finasteride syndrome. Ray has long pointed out the glaring logical flaw in this hypothesis: if DHT caused baldness, then young males — whose testosterone and DHT levels are highest — would have the highest rates of baldness. Instead, balding increases with age as androgen levels decline. Ray framed the issue in bioenergetic terms: prolactin — a stress hormone that rises with age, estrogen dominance, and endotoxin — is a potent metabolic inhibitor that drives hair loss and graying. Ray even pointed out that prolactin is a “molting” hormone in insects and that this process is analogous to balding in humans. This view by Ray has already been corroborated several times at the level of greying. Anti-prolactin drugs of the ergot class (e.g. bromoctiptine) have been shown to reverse even advanced staged of hair graying. The article below describes a new AI-designed drug, ABS-201, which targets the prolactin receptor. In preclinical trials, it completely reversed balding and even reversed graying in macaques. This is a direct validation of the bioenergetic view.
As the article below demonstrates, Absci has developed ABS-201, a prolactin receptor antagonist that shunts dormant hair follicles back into the anagen (growth) phase. In preclinical trials on macaques (primates that experience balding like humans), six months after treatment, the macaques had their full heads of hair again. In mice, ABS-201 resulted in full hair regrowth after 22 days, whereas minoxidil only produced hair growth in one-third of the mice. Remarkably, the drug also reversed premature graying — the monkeys’ hair changed back from gray to black.
This finding directly corroborates what Ray (and to a much lesser degree) I have said for years:
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Prolactin is a potent metabolic inhibitor. It suppresses mitochondrial function, increases oxidative stress, promotes fibrosis, and interferes with thyroid hormone action — all of which damage hair follicles. Lowering prolactin restores energy production and allows hair to regrow.
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The DHT hypothesis is biologically absurd. Young males have the highest DHT levels, yet baldness is rare in young men and increases with age as DHT declines. The real culprit is the age-related rise in prolactin, driven by estrogen dominance, endotoxin, and chronic stress. In fact, about a year ago I did a post on a study that showed DHT administration to actually accelerate hair growth in balding animals.
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Practical interventions to lower prolactin include: vitamin B6 (as pyridoxine or P5P), dopamine agonists (lisuride, bromocriptine — Ray Peat wrote extensively about lisuride), aspirin , and reducing endotoxin (carrot salad, activated charcoal) and serotonin (which stimulates prolactin release).
The human-equivalent dose is not yet available as this drug is in preclinical/early clinical trials. However, the principle is clear: blocking the prolactin receptor reverses hair loss and graying — something no DHT-blocking drug has ever achieved. The article notes that ABS-201 “bypasses the shedding phase minoxidil initially causes” and offers convenient dosing (injections every few months). This represents a paradigm shift away from the failed anti-androgen approach and toward the bioenergetic, prolactin-centered model that Ray Peat articulated decades ago. Now, the drug used in the study is exotic as there are not many prolactin receptor antagonists out there, even in purely research circles. However, anti-prolactin drugs such as bromocriptine are available and have been in clinical use for years. Since many doctors would refuse to prescribe bromocriptine as an experimental baldness treatment, a patient could bypass this hurdle by pointing out to the doctor that bromocriptine was approved a few years ago for the prevention and treatment of diabetes type II. So, if the patient has some extra weight or (God forbid) diabetes, convincing the doctor to prescribe one of the available anti-prolactin (i.e. dopamine agonist) drugs should be much easier.
https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/health/a69077094/new-hair-regrowth-treatment/
“…ABS-201 targets the prolactin receptor , a protein that typically plays a role in mammary development. Unlike other hair loss treatments like minoxidil and hair transplants, ABS-201 doesn’t just prevent further hair loss, it encourages hair regrowth .”
“…Hair loss occurs when follicles enter the telogen phase… ABS-201 works by shunting the dormant hair follicles back into a different phase of the hair cycle called the anagen phase. No other drugs target the prolactin receptor in the same way .”
“…In a preclinical trial, the research team tested ABS-201 on macaques, a primate species that experiences balding like humans do. Incredibly, six months after treatment, the macaques had their full heads of hair again .”
“…In that experiment, ABS-201 resulted in full hair regrowth after 22 days , whereas minoxidil only produced hair growth in one-third of the mice.”
“…ABS-201’s anti-aging possibilities don’t stop with just balding patients; the research team believes the drug could cure premature graying by repigmenting the hair. This finding appeared in the earlier study on macaques, where the monkeys’ hair changed back from gray to black .”
“…ABS-201 bypasses the shedding phase minoxidil initially causes, so patients are less likely to quit before they see results.”
