What is Berberine?
Berberine is a group of isoquinoline alkaloids in general and in particular organic constituents naturally occurring in several kinds of plants, namely Coptis sp, Berberis sp, Phellodendri Chinensis Cortex, used in Chinese medicine since more than one thousand years ago, as an anti-diarrhoealagent against bacterial gastroenteritis and diarrhoea [1, 2]. Berberin is in the roots or rhizomes and stem bark [3].
What does Berberine do?
Berberine shows an excellent spectrum of pharmacological activity It has been studied for the treatment of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hyperlipidemia, inflammation, bacterial and viral infections, mental disease and Alzheimer’s disease, osteoporosis, and more [1, 4].
In diabetic patients, berberine has been demonstrated to induce a substantial decrease in fasting blood glucose, haemoglobin A1C, inflammatory cytokines and oxidative stress markers while rapidly increasing insulin secretion, ameliorating insulin resistance and providing protection against diabetes complications, namely hepatic damage, cardiovascular disorders, nephropathy, and neuropathy [5].
Furthermore, Berberine shows anti-inflammatory and antioxidative potential. Recently, it was reported that this alkaloid possesses neuroprotective activity due to antiapoptotic, antioxidative and anti-inflammatory activities along with well-known pathways, eg, the Pl3K/Akt/Bcl-2 pathway, Nrf2/HO-1 pathway and MAPK signalling pathway [6].
Moreover, berberine inhibits the survival of bacteria, viruses, fungi, protozoans, helminths and chlamydia as an efficient antimicrobial agent [3]. Also, berberine demonstrates antiproliferative effects by inhibiting the proliferation of multiple cancer cell lines [7], and diminished invasion and metastasis.
Side effects of Berberine
Berberine, a plant extract widely used in clinical practice, is generally well-tolerated. However, it does have some side effects that users should be aware of.
Perhaps the most frequent adverse effect of berberine ingestion is related to gastrointestinal symptoms, in particular, constipation and diarrhoea [8].
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Finally, although berberine has shown promise in a wide range of beneficial effects, bioavailability – the percentage or volume of a substance that ends up in the body during digestion and/or absorption – is quite low after oral administration and this can limit its potential impact [10].
Can Berberine influence hair growth/loss?
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Berberine is also known to affect cell growth and differentiation; it has been found to suppress the growth of certain tumours and induce cell cycle arrest [13, 14]. Some layers of the hair follicle undergo cell differentiation and rapid cell division during hair growth, making these targets for anti-hair growth therapy but whether these effects would also happen in hair follicle cells remains unknown.
Remarkably, behind its skin-darkening capacity, berberine enhances in a dose-dependent way the number of melanin-containing dendrites in skin cells [15]. Melanin is the natural pigment that gives our hair, skin, and eyes their colour. It’s unclear, however, whether or not the same skin-darkening effect berberine has on the skin might also have an impact on hair pigments or hair health as well.
Conclusion
In conclusion, even though berberine has high biological activities that possibly may have indirect applications on hair health, no evidence has proven berberine can control hair loss or hair growth till now. More powerful and well-designed experiments are needed.