{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,18]],"date-time":"2026-08-18T04:58:41Z","timestamp":1787029121500,"version":"build-2736575974"},"reference-count":27,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"16","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,17]],"date-time":"2026-08-17T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1786924800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Wuhu Sci-Tech Program Project","award":["2024KJ002"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2024KJ002"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Molecules"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Oxidative stress contributes to hair follicle aging, melanocyte dysfunction, and androgen-related hair disorders, yet chemically characterized botanical interventions with multi-target activities remain incompletely defined. This study evaluated the antioxidant, follicle-supporting, and antiandrogenic potential of Eucommia ulmoides bark extract (EUE) using integrated in vitro and in vivo approaches and characterized EUE by HPLC-DAD using geniposidic acid and chlorogenic acid as representative marker compounds. Chlorogenic acid and geniposidic acid were present at 3.21 \u00b1 0.01 and 1.88 \u00b1 0.15 mg\/g extract, respectively. In replicate-well assays using H2O2-challenged B16 melanoma cells, EUE increased superoxide dismutase activity and reduced malondialdehyde accumulation. Technical-triplicate RT-qPCR measurements and a single Western blot experiment showed descriptive changes in Nrf2 and HO-1 markers; these observations are exploratory and require independent biological replication. In HDPCs, replicate-well viability assays and technical-triplicate RT-qPCR measurements indicated concentration-associated viability changes and descriptive changes in VEGF, Wnt5a, and \u03b2-catenin transcripts. EUE also inhibited 5\u03b1-reductase activity in a cell-free assay, although the non-monotonic response and the much higher mass concentrations used relative to finasteride preclude potency equivalence. In male C57BL\/6 mice, topical EUE attenuated H2O2-induced suppression of hair follicle elongation and improved follicular morphology. Overall, EUE is a chemically characterized botanical extract with preliminary biological activities relevant to oxidative stress- and androgen-associated hair disorders; independent replication, active-compound identification, marker-specific permeation, and protein-level validation of the measured markers remain necessary.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/molecules31162863","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,17]],"date-time":"2026-08-17T10:04:36Z","timestamp":1786961076000},"page":"2863","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Eucommia ulmoides Bark Extract Attenuates Oxidative Damage and H2O2-Induced Hair Follicle Suppression in Cellular and Mouse Models"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"31","author":[{"given":"Xiaojin","family":"Liu","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Anhui Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Enzymology and Mechanism of Major Metabolic Diseases, College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu 241000, China"},{"name":"Anhui Provincial Engineering Research Centre for Molecular Detection and Diagnostics, College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu 241000, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Shuyue","family":"Chen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Anhui Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Enzymology and Mechanism of Major Metabolic Diseases, College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu 241000, China"},{"name":"Anhui Provincial Engineering Research Centre for Molecular Detection and Diagnostics, College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu 241000, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yanyan","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Anhui Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Enzymology and Mechanism of Major Metabolic Diseases, College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu 241000, China"},{"name":"Anhui Provincial Engineering Research Centre for Molecular Detection and Diagnostics, College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu 241000, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yaqian","family":"Qiu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Anhui Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Enzymology and Mechanism of Major Metabolic Diseases, College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu 241000, China"},{"name":"Anhui Provincial Engineering Research Centre for Molecular Detection and Diagnostics, College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu 241000, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yefan","family":"Gu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Anhui Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Enzymology and Mechanism of Major Metabolic Diseases, College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu 241000, China"},{"name":"Anhui Provincial Engineering Research Centre for Molecular Detection and Diagnostics, College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu 241000, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,17]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1567","DOI":"10.1096\/fj.05-4039fje","article-title":"Towards a \u201cFree Radical Theory of Graying\u201d: Melanocyte Apoptosis in the Aging Human Hair Follicle Is an Indicator of Oxidative Stress Induced Tissue Damage","volume":"20","author":"Arck","year":"2006","journal-title":"FASEB J."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"107","DOI":"10.1111\/brv.12648","article-title":"The Biology of Human Hair Greying","volume":"96","author":"Nicu","year":"2021","journal-title":"Biol. 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