Verteporfin for Scar-less Skin Repair, and Hair Transplant Growth

[RapAdmin]

Just aggregating a number of different posts from around the site around a common theme:

Researchers have identified the mechanism of scar formation in skin and demonstrated in mice a way to make wounds heal with normal skin instead of scar tissue.

Researchers find drug that enables healing without scarring

Preventing Engrailed-1 activation in fibroblasts yields wound regeneration without scarring

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aba2374

In groundbreaking discovery, Stanford researchers identify drug that could...

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/22/health/surgery-scar.html

Verteporfin sourced from India, (About 80 rupees to the US$, so divide these prices below by 80, so $13 to $30 per 15 mg vial or so for India-brand verteporfin)

Zombie Cells Have a Weakness. An Experimental Anti-Aging Therapy Exploits It

“The team injected elderly mice—roughly the age of a 70-year-old human—with verteporfin once a month for two months. In just a week, mice treated with verteporfin showed fewer molecular signs of senescence in their kidney, liver, and lungs. Their fur was more luxurious compared to control mice without the drug.” […]

How to Reverse Skin Aging

Perhaps verteporfin+microneedling (or other therapy that stimulates wound healing like laser treatment) could rejuvenate elastin. Some hair transplant surgeons have already been using verteporfin as it shows some ability to regenerate excised hair follicles, in addition to reducing scarring. The Longaker lab at Stanford has done much of the work on how verteporfin prevents scarring. If you have time, great recent lecture (with health implications for more than just skin regeneration): [Fibroblast Heterogeneity, Mechanotransduction and Fibrosis] In pigs (which have skin closer to humans) verteporfin can normalize the elastic ratio in response to a wound, which suggests that it regenerates elastin (which normally is poorly regenerated in adult wound healing [ref]). [Screenshot 2025-01-03 at 10.46.53 PM] Data from Elucidating the Role of Tissue Mechanics in Wound Repair and Regeneration (PhD thesis) Verteporfin is already an approved photosensitizing drug (it generates R…

Verteporfin In Hair Transplants | Next Breakthrough Treatment?

Use of Verteporfin to Regrow Hair and Reduce Fibrosis after Transplantation

journal-of-dermatology-research-and-therapy-ijdrt-11-131.pdf (433.7 KB)

[Tim]

Doesn’t seem to offer much help for established scars.

[KarlT]

Maybe I missed it. How is it administered for scars? Normally that medication is given IV.

[RapAdmin]

I believe its injected into the wounds.

[AustraliaLongevity]

I’d be interested to see this used on the face in a sort of mesotherapy, lots of small subQ injections all over the face.

[Raquel]

After 4 months of trying different creams, including corticosteroids, I just ordered a rapamycin cream (0.2% concentration). Fingers crossed that the dear rapamycin can help to heal some scars.

(Haha, I just earned “first emoji!”. Thank you )