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Do Alopecia Areata and Hair Colour Have a Shared Genetic Component?
Leonie Rieger-Molitor1, Carlo Maj2, Silke Redler1
1Institute of Human Genetics, University of Bonn, Medical Faculty & University Hospital Bonn, Bonn, Germany.
Experimental Dermatology
|June 18, 2026
Summary
This study investigated the genetic link between hair color and alopecia areata (AA) risk. While no strong shared genetic basis was found, a weak inverse association between blond hair and AA risk suggests further research is needed.
Area of Science:
- Genetics
- Dermatology
- Immunology
Background:
- Alopecia areata (AA) is an autoimmune disorder causing non-scarring hair loss.
- A potential link between hair pigmentation and AA pathogenesis has been suggested.
- Epidemiological data indicate darker hair color may increase AA risk, while lighter hair color may decrease it.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate a shared genetic basis between hair color determination and alopecia areata risk.
- To explore the genetic correlation between these two traits.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of genome-wide association study (GWAS) data from 16,310 Caucasian individuals with AA.
- Utilized a hair color GWAS dataset of 343,234 UK Biobank participants.
- Employed polygenic risk score and linkage disequilibrium score regression (LDSC) analyses to assess genetic correlations.
Main Results:
- No strong evidence for a broadly shared genetic component between hair color and AA was identified.
- A suggestive, weak inverse association was observed between genetically predicted blond hair and AA risk.
- The findings are considered exploratory due to the AA-GWAS sample size and require replication.
Conclusions:
- The genetic underpinnings of the observed association between hair color and alopecia areata risk remain unclear.
- Further research with larger cohorts is warranted to validate the exploratory findings regarding blond hair and AA risk.
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