2004 ANNUAL SCIENTIFIC SEMINAR 493 and either of the other two patterns of loss when accompanied by hirsutism or oligomenorrhea are almost always associated with hyperandrogenemia. Most women with FPHL, hmvever, have neither signs nor laboratory abnormalities suggestive of androgen excess. Anti-androgens (ex, spironolactone) have not been shown to be uniformly effective in FPHL but rather only in a smaller subgroup of these women with hyperandrogenemia. Similarly, finasteride has been reported to be effective only in those women with FPHL who also have hyperandrogenemia and not to be useful in postmenopausal women with FPHL without these signs. Thus there appears to be a discordant response to anti androgens or 5 alpha reductase inhibitors in women with the clinical pattern of FPHL with or without androgen excess. This is an important distinction since no further progression can occur in basic or clinical research in this area without evaluating these two groups of women separately. Treatment for FPHL, other than systemic therapy in a select population as noted above, is today primarily topical minoxidil. Although the 5% topical minoxidil solution is not FDA approved for women, it has been tested and found to be more effective than the 2% topical minoxidil therapy. The alcohol and propylene glycol base of topical minoxidil offer certain challenges for uses. The alcohol dries the hair and scalp and the propylene glycol (higher in the 5% preparation than the 2% preparation) makes the fine hair limp (and most women •vith FPHL do have fine hair). Those women who apply hair color, especially those in the older age group, report that the color is stripped off much more quickly from the roots when using Rogaine. The cosmetic challenge is to find hair shampoos and/or conditioners that moistufize the fine hair without making it limp and hair color that is resistant to alcohol based vehicles. Other major types of hair loss such as alopecia areata, telogen effluvium, and trichotillomania, do not effect the caliber of the hair, just the density of the hair and the involved hair in these conditions should not require any special treatment. There is, however, another major cause of hair loss in which the hair requires special handling but for which presently there is a void in specific products to recommend. Follicular degeneration syndrome or central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia is a condition that occurs almost exclusively in African American women (and some African American men) in which the central scalp hair is permanently lost. It has been blamed on hair cosmetics including relaxers, permanents or heat processing, but the relatedness of these to the hair loss has never been proven. The hair follicle of Negroid lineage is much more curved and generally thicker in diameter than Oriental or Causcasian hair leading to tightly curled or kinky hair which is more fragile despite the thickness of the individual hairs. Shampooing, because of its drying effect, must be limited. Emo!lients are necessary to help cut down on the friction when combing the hair although many times the products used are occlusive, potentially irritating and may serve as a nidus for infection. Trauma to the curved follicle is invariable when the hair is manipulated by combing or braiding or when permanent wave, relaxer, or heat is applied in order to straighten the hair. The end result is hair breakage and alopecia. Much more information is needed on the relatedness of hair grooming techniques to hair loss and alternative means of grooming and managing African American hair. References: Olsen, EA (ed) Hair Disorders: Diagnosis and Treatment. McGraw Hill, New York, 2003

494 JOURNAL OF COSMETIC SCIENCE WHAT'S NEW IN HAIR COLORING Keith Brown, Ph.D. Permanent hair dyes color hair by the formation of dyes within the hair cortex from colorless dye precursors. This chemical reaction is initiated by oxidation and results in the combining of at least two single ring aromatics to produce multi-ring dyes. The smaller precursors can readily penetrate the hair but, once formed, the larger dye is essentially locked inside the hair and is therefore stable to removal by water or shampoo. During the last 50 years, the detailed chemistry of these complex reactions has been studied and it is now generally well understood and published. Reactions occur in three consecutive steps. Initial oxidation of suitably substituted, readily oxidized primary intermediates gives electron deficient imino compounds which then react rapidly with the electron rich couplers to form leuco dye intermediates. The third step is oxidation of the leuco dye to the final dye. This chemistry produces a dye containing two precursor units (one from the primary intermediate and one from the coupler). In some cases reactions involving addition of further precursor units to the dye can occur and results in dye consisting of at least three precursor units. These two dye types have different applications in hair dyeing, but both chemistries are essential for successful shade development. In practice, formulations contain several primary intermediates and couplers, and the final shades results from a series of reactions where couplers compete for the various imines giving a mixture of dyes which contribute to the desired shade. In addition, much is now known of the relationship between dye structural characteristics and the quality of the color, as well as the specific and preferred applications for the various multi-ring dyes. Although these dyes are essentially stable to removal by shampoo, they may undergo color changes or fading due to chemical reactions occurring within the hair caused by various external factors such as exposure to weather or additional cosmetic treatments. Studies have established the chemical reactions that cause such changes and it appears that pH is the critical factor in most fading reactions. Application of this chemical understanding has now allowed for the development of new dye precursors with specific and targeted properties involving both color and performance improvements. In particular dyes with brighter and more distinct colors have been developed from novel primary intermediates and couplers, and significant improvements in dye stability towards shampoo and perspiration have been achieved by manipulating structural features of both primary intermediates and couplers. All of these developments have appeared in commercial products in recent years.