Abstract
Alopecia areata is a complex genetic disease characterised by a loss of hair follicle immune privilege, and an immune cell influx around hair follicles which results in inflammation induced hair loss. The NKG2D ligand, ULBP3, is expressed on Alopecic hair follicles, and acts as a danger signal, recruiting Cytotoxic T cells to the skin, which subsequently attack hair follicle bulbs. Alopecia onset is usually very sudden, and random, and progression is exacerbated by a feed forward loop existing between cytotoxic T cells, and hair follicles. In this presentation, I will discuss how targeting specific aspects of this feed forward loop enables us to delay onset, and reverse long standing Alopecia Areata.