Polymorphic CAG Repeat Numbers in the Androgen Receptor Gene of Female Pattern Hair Loss in a Han Chinese Population.

OBJECTIVE To investigate the association of CAG repeat numbers in the androgen receptor (AR) gene with female pattern hair loss (FPHL) in a Chinese population. METHODS A total of 200 Han Chinese patients with FPHL (142 Ludwig II and 58 Ludwig III cases) and 200 healthy controls were enrolled in this study. The polymorphism of CAG repeat numbers was analyzed by the fluorescent amplified fragment length polymorphism technique. RESULTS The CAG biallelic mean length was 23.73 ± 2.04 repeats in Han Chinese FPHL patients and 23.90 ± 2.13 repeats in healthy controls, without any significant difference between the two groups (p = 0.481). In addition, neither the shorter nor the longer CAG repeat numbers were significantly different between FPHL and control subjects (p = 0.726, p = 0.383). CONCLUSION The polymorphism of CAG repeat numbers of the AR gene may not be the genetic marker of FPHL in a Chinese population.