Ingredient intelligence
Minoxidil
Hair biology · Minoxidil (medicine in most jurisdictions) · C9H15N5O
Minoxidil is a potassium-channel opener used as a regulated topical medicine for pattern hair loss. It is included for hair-follicle biology context, not as a cosmetic ingredient.
Any underlined term can be tapped for an everyday-English translation.
Molecular identity
- Formula
- C9H15N5O
- Molecular weight
- 209.25 g/mol
- PubChem CID
- 4201
- ChEBI
- CHEBI:6942
Biological targets
ATP-sensitive potassium channel (KCNJ8)
medium confidenceactivates · transporter
UniProt Q15842Sulfotransferase 1A1 (SULT1A1)
medium confidencetargets · enzyme
Required for prodrug in the .
UniProt P50225Vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA)
low confidenceassociated with · receptor
UniProt P15692
How could this ingredient interact with biology?
Biological network
Ingredient → molecule → target → gene/protein → pathway → process → studied outcome. Relationship strength is drawn from the curated confidence tier; nothing is added to make the chain look complete.
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3 lower-confidence relationships are hidden at this filter level. Use “Show more biology” to include them.
Text alternative for this network
- Minoxidil is molecule Minoxidil — high confidence
- Minoxidil is molecule Minoxidil sulfate — high confidence
- Minoxidil activates ATP-sensitive potassium channel (KCNJ8) — medium confidence
- Minoxidil targets Sulfotransferase 1A1 (SULT1A1) — medium confidence
- Sulfotransferase 1A1 (SULT1A1) encoded by SULT1A1 — medium confidence
- ATP-sensitive potassium channel (KCNJ8) encoded by KCNJ8 — medium confidence
- SULT1A1 participates in Potassium channels — medium confidence
- KCNJ8 participates in Potassium channels — medium confidence
- Potassium channels associated with Hair follicle cycling — medium confidence
- Potassium channels associated with Dermal papilla signalling — medium confidence
- Hair follicle cycling studied in Regulated medicine for pattern hair loss; not a cosmetic claim — high confidence
- Dermal papilla signalling studied in Regulated medicine for pattern hair loss; not a cosmetic claim — medium confidence
Biological pathways
Potassium channels
medium confidenceATP-sensitive potassium channel opening in tissue.
Reactome R-HSA-1296071
VEGFA-VEGFR2 signalling
low confidencePerifollicular vascular signalling association.
Reactome R-HSA-4420097
Evidence engine
Moderate
Some human evidence exists, but replication or sample sizes are limited.
Skinceptor Evidence Index
62
experimental · of 100
This index is a research-navigation aid describing how much evidence exists and how it was produced. It is not a medical safety score, an efficacy guarantee, or a clinical recommendation.
Study composition
- Human1
- Meta-analysis1
- Total studies
- 2
- Human studies
- 2
- Largest sample
- 71
- Range
- 2014–2020
Index breakdown
- Study design quality85% × 28%
Mean design weight across curated studies (meta-analysis 1.0, RCT 0.9, other human 0.7, review 0.45, animal 0.35, in-vitro 0.25).
- Human evidence share67% × 22%
Proportion of curated evidence measured in people rather than cells or animals.
- Evidence volume50% × 14%
Log-scaled count of curated studies, so volume alone cannot dominate the score.
- Largest sample size62% × 12%
Log-scaled largest reported sample size across curated human studies.
- Replication33% × 12%
Independent human studies, capped at three; one study is never treated as replicated.
- Recency70% × 7%
Linear decay over a twenty-year window from the most recent curated publication.
- Source traceability0% × 5%
Share of curated studies with a verified PMID or DOI in this dataset.
Insufficient comparable evidence for quantitative synthesis.
Research timeline
How the evidence accumulated
2014
Minoxidil sulfate and follicular sulfotransferase activity as a response predictor
Humann = 71 · Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology
2020
Topical minoxidil in androgenetic alopecia: a systematic review of randomised trials
Meta-analysissample size unavailable · Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology
Ingredient fingerprint
14 nodes · 20 relationships · seed "minoxidil"
The fingerprint is a deterministic visual signature: ridge amplitude comes from the number of entities in each tier, node placement from identifier hashes, and opacity from confidence. Two ingredients can never produce the same figure unless their networks are identical.
Open in Biology as Art →Research
2 curated studies
Topical minoxidil in androgenetic alopecia: a systematic review of randomised trials
Pooled analysis reported increased hair count versus placebo across multiple randomised trials.
Limitations — Regulated medicine; outcomes measured over 16-48 weeks; discontinuation reverses gains.
Minoxidil sulfate and follicular sulfotransferase activity as a response predictor
Reported association between follicular SULT1A1 activity and clinical response to topical minoxidil.
Limitations — Observational association; identifier not verified during curation.
Community evidence
Submitted by readers
Reader submissions appear here only after review. They are not part of the curated dataset and do not affect the Skinceptor Evidence Index.
No approved community submissions yet.
Sources
- PubChem 4201Verified 2026-09-14
- UniProt P50225Verified 2026-09-14
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