557 | id == 557
557 | category_id == 30
557 | category_order == 27
557 | category_name == Hair Loss
557 | category_color == #C47AC0
557 | slug == AUTS2-baldness
557 | title == The Role of a Neurological Gene in Male-Pattern Baldness (AUTS2)
557 | meta_description == The AUTS2 gene is important for healthy neurological development. How is it connected to male-pattern baldness?
557 | summary == <p><strong>The <em>AUTS2 </em>gene is important for healthy neurological development. How is it connected to male-pattern baldness? Read on to find out.</strong></p>
557 | overall_score_text == Your Hair Loss Score (based on AUTS2)
557 | image == https://sd-selfdecode-assets-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/blog/background/AUTS2-Male-pattern-baldness.jpg
557 | author_id == 1
557 | author_name == Jasmine Foster
557 | author_title == BSc, BEd
557 | author_order == 36
557 | author_photo == https://sd-selfdecode-assets-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/blog/author-photo/Jasmine.jpg
557 | author_intro == <p><strong>Jasmine received her BS from McGill University and her BEd from Vancouver Island University.</strong></p>    <p>Jasmine loves helping people understand their brains and bodies, a passion that grew out of her dual background in biology and education. From the chem lab to the classroom, everyone has the right to learn and make informed decisions about their health.</p>
557 | reviewer == None
557 | medical_reviewer_id == 11
557 | medical_reviewer_name == Puya Yazdi
557 | medical_reviewer_title == MD
557 | publish_date == 2020
557 | publish_date == 12
557 | publish_date == 17
557 | avg_rating == 5.0
557 | tags_id == 1050
557 | tags_name == AUTS2 Gene
557 | tags_id == 768
557 | tags_name == Cell Death
557 | tags_id == 1032
557 | tags_name == Hair Follicle
557 | tags_id == 1033
557 | tags_name == Hair Growth Cycle
557 | tags_id == 1029
557 | tags_name == Hair Loss
557 | tags_id == 1028
557 | tags_name == Male-Pattern Baldness
557 | tags_id == 26
557 | tags_name == Neurogenesis
557 | permissions_favorite == False
557 | permissions_rate == False
557 | content_article == <h2><strong>Summary</strong></h2> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">AUTS2 </span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">encodes activator of transcription and developmental regulatory AUTS2 or autism susceptibility candidate 2. Variants of </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">AUTS2</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;"> may play a role in male-pattern baldness by disrupting the hair growth cycle. Lifestyle, diet, and supplement modifications may counteract the effects of these variants by supporting AUTS2 function or decreasing p53.</span></p> <h2><strong><em>AUTS2 </em></strong><strong>and Male-Pattern Baldness</strong></h2> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The </span><a href="https://selfdecode.com/gene/auts2/"><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">AUTS2</span></em></a> <span style="font-weight: 400;">gene encodes a protein called activator of transcription and developmental regulator AUTS2 or autism susceptibility candidate 2 [</span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/gene/26053"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">].</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">AUTS2 participates in the growth and development of the nervous system and has mainly been studied for its link to intellectual disabilities and neurological disorders like autism. Some studies also suggest that AUTS2 may play a role in addictive behavior [</span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/gene/26053"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4795056/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3506170/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">].</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In the brain and nerves, mutations that reduce or eliminate AUTS2 function lead to serious defects of nerve development. Typical symptoms of AUTS2 deletion include [</span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4795056/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">]:</span></p> <ul> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Low weight at birth</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Difficulty eating</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Intellectual disability</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Small skull</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Somewhat abnormal physical development (drooping eyelids, small ears, deep nasal bridge, etc.)</span></li> </ul> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">However, </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">AUTS2 </span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">and its associated disorders have also been linked to male-pattern baldness [</span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3364959/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">].&nbsp;</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">This gene is expressed in surprisingly large quantities in hair, skin, and scalp tissues. Researchers don&rsquo;t currently know how </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">AUTS2</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;"> affects these tissues; however, given how reduced AUTS2 produces serious health problems in the nervous system, we are assuming that the detrimental </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">AUTS2</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;"> variants reduce the expression or activity of this gene [</span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3364959/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3364959/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4795056/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">].</span></p> <p><span style="background-color: #e8ebfc; border-left: 2px solid #4569fa; display: block; padding: 20px;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">AUTS2</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;"> gene is important for healthy neurological development and has been associated with abnormal hair growth patterns.</span></span></p> <h2><strong>Your </strong><strong><em>AUTS2</em></strong><strong> Results for Male-Pattern Baldness</strong></h2> <p>*2434911396088646*</p> <p><a href="https://selfdecode.com/gene/auts2/"><strong>AUTS2</strong></a> <a href="https://selfdecode.com/snp/rs6945541/"><strong>rs6945541</strong></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> [</span><a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosgenetics/article?id=10.1371/journal.pgen.1002746"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">]</span></p> <ul> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">&lsquo;T&rsquo; = Associated with relatively lower rates of male-pattern baldness</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">&lsquo;C&rsquo; = Associated with relatively higher rates of male-pattern baldness</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The &lsquo;C&rsquo; allele may disrupt the hair growth cycle by unknown mechanisms [</span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3364959/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3364959/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4795056/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">].</span></li> </ul> <p><a href="https://selfdecode.com/gene/auts2/"><strong>AUTS2</strong></a> <a href="https://selfdecode.com/snp/rs4718886/"><strong>rs4718886</strong></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> [</span><a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25826379/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-018-07862-y"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosgenetics/article?id=10.1371/journal.pgen.1006594"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5691155/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">]</span></p> <ul> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">&lsquo;A&rsquo; = Associated with relatively higher rates of male-pattern baldness</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">&lsquo;G&rsquo; = Associated with relatively lower rates of male-pattern baldness</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The &lsquo;A&rsquo; allele may disrupt the hair growth cycle by unknown mechanisms [</span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3364959/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3364959/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4795056/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">].</span></li> </ul> <p><a href="https://selfdecode.com/gene/auts2/"><strong>AUTS2</strong></a> <a href="https://selfdecode.com/snp/rs939963/"><strong>rs939963</strong></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> [</span><a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25826379/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosgenetics/article?id=10.1371/journal.pgen.1006594"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5691155/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">]</span></p> <ul> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">&lsquo;C&rsquo; = Associated with relatively lower rates of male-pattern baldness</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">&lsquo;G&rsquo; = Associated with relatively higher rates of male-pattern baldness</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The &lsquo;G&rsquo; allele may disrupt the hair growth cycle by unknown mechanisms [</span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3364959/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3364959/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4795056/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">].</span></li> </ul> <p>*6409234342608892*</p> <h2><strong>Recommendations for Improving Hair Growth</strong></h2> <p>*6937674672752896*</p> <h3><strong>Zinc</strong></h3> <p><a href="https://selfdecode.com/gene/zmat3/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">ZMAT3</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> (also known as WIG1) is part of the </span><a href="https://selfdecode.com/blog/article/tp53-longevity-103/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">p53</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> signalling pathway and regulates the expression of </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">AUTS2</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">. ZMAT3 contains structures known as zinc fingers, which require </span><a href="https://selfhacked.com/blog/literally-everything-wanted-know-zinc-backed-science/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">zinc</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> to function; when ZMAT3 is deficient, AUTS2 activity drops. It is therefore very important to get enough zinc in your diet or through supplements if you are already prone to low AUTS2 [</span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3823538/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">].</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">A study of 120 men found that those with male-pattern baldness had lower blood levels of </span><a href="https://selfhacked.com/blog/literally-everything-wanted-know-zinc-backed-science/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">zinc</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> and </span><a href="https://selfhacked.com/blog/biotin/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">vitamin B7</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> [</span><a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30714301/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">].</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In another study of 48 men with this condition, normal blood zinc levels were associated with better success of conservative therapies and increased hair density [</span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7277952/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">].</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Good dietary sources of zinc include red meat, seafood, dairy products, nuts, legumes, and whole grains. The daily recommended intake of zinc is 11 mg for men and 8 mg for women; this recommendation increases during pregnancy and lactation [</span><a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11053529/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Zinc-HealthProfessional/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">].</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400; background-color: #e8ebfc; border-left: 2px solid #4569fa; display: block; padding: 20px;">Zinc may support the correct function of proteins that help support AUTS2, and people with male-pattern baldness tend to have lower zinc levels.</span></p> <h3><strong>Caffeine</strong></h3> <p><a href="https://selfhacked.com/blog/caffeine-benefits/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Caffeine</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> prevents cell death through the regulation of p53 signalling, which in turn regulates </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">AUTS2</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;"> through ZMAT3. Increasing caffeine intake (by drinking coffee or tea) may decrease p53 activity in some tissues and thereby increase AUTS2 activity [</span><a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12811820/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3823538/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">].</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Caffeine should be used sparingly, as it can cause negative side effects to the heart if ingested in large quantities. Some people are also prone to developing caffeine tolerance. Depending on </span><a href="https://selfdecode.com/blog/article/caffeine-heart-disease-cyp1a2-55/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">your ability to metabolize caffeine</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, you can determine how much coffee you can safely drink [</span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK519490/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">].</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Topical lotions and shampoos with </span><a href="https://selfhacked.com/blog/caffeine-benefits/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">caffeine</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> increased hair strength and thickness while decreasing hair loss in 4 trials (2 of them controlled) of 340 men with male-pattern baldness. The lotion enhanced the effectiveness of </span><a href="https://selfhacked.com/blog/topical-minoxidil-hair-loss/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">minoxidil</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> in one of them [</span><a href="http://iscd.it/files/Use-of-a-Cosmetic-Caffeine-Lotion-in-the-Treatment-of-Male-Androgenetic-Alopecia.pdf"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="http://www.iscd.it/files/Use-of-a-Caffeine-Shampoo-for-the-Treatment-of-Male-Androgenetic-Alopecia.pdf"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="http://jmums.mazums.ac.ir/article-1-1689-en.html"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5804833/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">].</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Similarly, a shampoo with caffeine used for 6 months reduced hair loss and increased hair strength in women in a placebo-controlled trial [</span><a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29512972/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">].</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Caffeine lotions for hair loss come in concentrations of up to 30 mg/mL. Make sure to follow the instructions on the label when applying these products to your skin [</span><a href="https://www.karger.com/Article/Fulltext/508228"><span style="font-weight: 400;">R</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">].</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400; background-color: #e8ebfc; border-left: 2px solid #4569fa; display: block; padding: 20px;">Caffeine regulates p53 activity, which in turn may help support AUTS2 function. Creams containing caffeine may help restore hair growth in patients with male-pattern baldness.</span></p>
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557 | content_learn_more_6409234342608892_text == Based on the variants we looked at, your AUTS2 gene is somewhat associated with disrupted hair growth. However, this doesn't necessarily reflect your overall risk of male-pattern baldness; it’s just one gene related to it. Zinc and caffeine may help. Keep scrolling to find out more.
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rsIDs = rs939963,rs6945541,rs4718886
rsStatus = rs939963,LOC105375343,chr7,69122810,G,A,C,T,35,0,Normal
rsStatus = rs6945541,LOC105375343,chr7,69146973,C,T,,,16,7,HET
rsStatus = rs4718886,,chr7,69433703,A,G,,,33,0,Normal
